Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2011
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011agufmsa13a1880f&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2011, abstract #SA13A-1880
Physics
[5435] Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets / Ionospheres
Scientific paper
A simple representative model of the ionosphere of Mars is fit to the complete set of electron density profiles from the Mars Global Surveyor radio occultation experiment database. Both the primary (M2) and secondary (M1) peaks in electron density are represented as the sum of two Chapman layers. While this model is not intended to reflect the physical processes present at all altitudes, it proves to be a useful method to determine several characteristics of the electron density profile, including the width, height, and maximum electron density of each layer. Here we report an analysis of these derived characteristics for the M1 layer. While the altitude of the M2 layer is known to increase with increasing solar zenith angle (SZA), the altitude of the M1 layer does not change significantly with SZA. The peak electron density of the M1 layer is observed to increase with decreasing SZA. The M1 layer appears to increase in width as its peak electron density increases, though the opposite trend is observed in the M2 layer.
Fallows K.
Girazian Z. R.
Withers Paul
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