Ion flow at comet Halley

Physics

Scientific paper

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Giotto Mission, Halley'S Comet, Plasma-Particle Interactions, Positive Ions, Solar Wind, Space Plasmas, Bow Waves, Ion Probes, Plasma Dynamics, Plasma Turbulence, Shock Waves, Comets, Halley, Spacecraft Observations, Mission Description, Experiments, Ions, Flow, Jpr, Johnstone Plasma Analyser, Interactions, Protons, Alpha Particles, Solar Wind, Structure, Plasma, Bow Shock, Turbulence, Distance, Fis, Fast Ion Sensor, Iis, Implanted Ion Sensor, Spectra

Scientific paper

The three-dimensional positive ion analyzer aboard the Giotto spacecraft has been used to study the interaction between protons and alpha-particles in the solar wind and positive ions from comet Halley. Although the first impression of the overall structure is that the plasma flow evolves smoothly as the nucleus is approached, three sharp transitions of relatively small amplitude can be identified on both the inbound and outbound legs of the trajectory. The outermost one, at about one million km from the nucleus, appears to be a multiple crossing of a weak bow shock. The innermost one, at 80,000 km, is the boundary where the flowing plasma becomes depleted. On a microscopic scale, the turbulence created by the interaction between the two ion populations extends to a distance of several million km from the nucleus. At Giotto's closest approach to the nucleus, the plasma produced around the spacecraft by dust and gas impacts was much more energetic than had been expected.

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