Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2006
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006agufm.p14a..08b&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2006, abstract #P14A-08
Physics
5408 Aurorae And Airglow, 5435 Ionospheres (2459), 5443 Magnetospheres (2756), 6225 Mars
Scientific paper
Since late 2003, Mars Express (MEX) and Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) have been making complementary in situ measurements (in terms of both instrument and orbit) of the Martian plasma environment. Study of MGS and MEX data in tandem provides an opportunity to mitigate the shortcomings of each dataset and increase our overall understanding of the Martian solar wind interaction and atmospheric escape. Close passes of spacecraft (conjunctions) are one particularly powerful means of increasing the utility of measurements, as evidenced by the Cluster mission at Earth. At Mars, conjunctions might be used to obtain more complete simultaneous and/or co-located plasma measurements, which can be used to study a variety of phenomena, including measurements of auroral-like particle acceleration near crustal fields and the three-dimensional motion and shape of plasma boundaries. We will present an analysis of approximately forty conjunctions (instances with instantaneous spacecraft separation smaller than 400 km) of MEX and MGS identified between January 2004 and February 2006. The closest pass was ~40~km, near the South Pole. Conjunctions occur both at mid-latitudes (when the surface-projected orbit tracks of the two spacecraft nearly overlap), and at the poles. We will present comparisons of MEX Analyzer of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms (ASPERA-3) data with MGS Magnetometer and Electron Reflectometer (MAG/ER) data for these events. Our case studies include intercomparison of MEX and MGS electron data, the addition of MGS magnetic field and MEX ion data, and the inclusion of solar wind proxy information to establish context. In addition to these close conjunctions, we will present the preliminary results of a search for times when MEX and MGS pass through the same region of space separated by a delay (for time evolution of plasma populations in certain regions), and times when they occupy the same flux tube (for spatial evolution of particle distributions). Continued study of simultaneous MGS-MEX observations, and of simultaneous Rosetta observations planned for February 2007, will provide leverage needed to better understand the interaction of the solar wind with the Martian atmosphere.
Barabash Stas
Brain Dave
Frahm Robert
Halekas J.
Luhmann Janet
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