Multi-spacecraft Observations of the Martian Plasma Interaction

Details Multi-spacecraft Observations of the Martian Plasma Interaction Multi-spacecraft Observations of the Martian Plasma Interaction

Sep 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006dps....38.6021b&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #38, #60.21; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 38, p.601

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Scientific paper

Two spacecraft with complementary instrumentation and orbits are currently making in situ measurements of the Martian plasma environment. Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) measures electrons and magnetic field from a 400 km circular mapping orbit with fixed local time. Mars Express (MEX) measures ions, electrons, and neutral particles from a precessing elliptical orbit. Each spacecraft's dataset has obvious strengths and shortcomings. Exploration of these two datasets in tandem provides an opportunity to 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 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 ranging from the motion and 3D shape of plasma boundaries to particle acceleration near crustal magnetic fields.
We have identified 40 conjunctions (instances with spacecraft separation <400; km) of MGS and MEX between January 2004 and February 2006. The closest pass was 40 km. Conjunctions occur at mid-latitudes (when the surface-projected orbit tracks of the two spacecraft nearly overlap), and at the poles. We will present comparisons of MGS Magnetometer and Electron Reflectometer (MAG/ER) and MEX Analyzer of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms (ASPERA-3) data for these events, including intercomparison of MGS and MEX electron data, the addition of MGS magnetic field and MES ion data, and the inclusion of solar wind proxy information to establish context. Finally, we will present the results of a search for other useful configurations of MGS and MEX, including times when they are on the same flux tube, times when they pass through the same region of space separated by a delay, and times when they are on opposite sides of plasma boundaries.

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