Venusian ion populations and bow shock as seen by the ASPERA-4 ion instrument on Venus Express

Mathematics – Probability

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Introduction We examine ion populations at Venus. Previous models use magnetic crossing points to derive the bow shock position. The current work uses data from the ASPERA-4 (Analyser of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms) [1] instrument to measure ion populations and derive a bow shock position at Venus. Instrumentation The ASPERA-4 instrument flies onboard Venus Express (VEX) and is comprised of five different detectors (Barabash et al 2006 [1]). A neutral particle detector and analyser, an electron spectrometer and the Ion Mass Analyser (IMA) (ref). This paper uses the IMA instrument for all its data and an explanation of the specifications is required. The instrument is a top hat electrostatic analyser; it runs through voltages to scan look angles and also acceptance energies. In one look direction it scans through 96 different energy values before changing to the next. A full scan of all look directions and energies takes 192 seconds. Data Collection All data is weighed dependant upon its probability of the spacecraft measuring at a particular point and when fitted produces a value of 1.24 RV, somewhat closer distance for the sub solar point than previous authors - see figure 1. We separate the data according to slow or fast solar wind and not the similarities and differences in the results derived. The inbound and outbound bow shock crossings were taken by inspection of 106 orbits between November 2006 and February 2007. Any orbits where the crossing point was not clear or with data missing were ignored. The occupational probability is found from orbital mechanics. By setting up a grid and deriving the amount of time it takes to cross each square the probability as a whole can then be determined. Ion distribution plots Two dimensional maps of the ions are produced and the bow shock model overplotted to verify its accuracy, as shown in figure 3. The test of the bow shock is to place it upon real data and examine the fit. To do this ion distribution plots are created and have the bow shock model placed upon them. The maps are shown in fig 8 and comprise 6 months of data from VEX in 2007. The count rates of all spectra of every orbit were stored and binned into a grid system. Each box in the grid being averaged from all values placed into it. The results were then smoothed and the maps created for individual species and plot types. Fig 3 shows maps for hydrogen ions in the x-y plane and in cylindrical coordinates signed with y. This plot is the same as a standard cylindrical plot but the r value is positive if y is positive and negative if y is negative. Effect of Coronal mass Ejections The HI imager on STEREO is able to image Coronal mass Ejections (CME) in the inner Solar System. In a recent paper, Roullard et al 2008 [2] have considered a CME observed to impact Venus, and used in situ measurements to examine the response of the magnetosphere. The plots in figure4 show the measured ion response to this and an earlier CME. We will examine the ion signatures in detail. Acknowledgements We acknowledge the contributions of the entire Aspera 4 team: S. Barabash, R. Lundin, H. Andersson, K. Brinkfeld, A. Grigoriev, H. Gunell, M. Holmström, M. Yamauchi, K. Asamura, P. Bochsler, P. Wurz, R. Cerulli-Irelli, A. Mura, A. Milillo, M. Maggi, S. Orsini, A. J. Coates, D. R. Linder, D. O. Kataria, C. C. Curtis, K. C. Hsieh, B. R. Sandel, R. A. Frahm, J. R. Sharber, J. D. Winningham, M. Grande, E. Kallio, H. Koskinen, P. Riihelä, W. Schmidt, T. Säles, J. U. Kozyra,N. Krupp, J. Woch,.S. Livi, J. G., Luhmann, S. McKenna-Lawlor, E. C. Roelof, D. J. Williams, J.-A. Sauvaud, A. Fedorov, and J.-J. Thocaven. References [1] S. Barabash, R. Lundin, H. Andersson, K. Brinkfeld, A. Grigoriev, H. Gunell, M. Holmström, M. Yamauchi, K. Asamura, P. Bochsler, P. Wurz, R. Cerulli-Irelli, A. Mura, A. Milillo, M. Maggi, S. Orsini, A. J. Coates, D. R. Linder, D. O. Kataria, C. C. Curtis, K. C. Hsieh, B. R. Sandel, R. A. Frahm, J. R. Sharber, J. D. Winningham, M. Grande, E. Kallio, H. Koskinen, P. Riihelä, W. Schmidt, T. Säles, J. U. Kozyra,N. Krupp, J. Woch,.S. Livi, J. G., Luhmann, S. McKenna-Lawlor, E. C. Roelof, D. J. Williams, J.-A. Sauvaud, A. Fedorov, and J.-J. Thocaven The Analyser of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms (ASPERA-3) for the Mars Express Mission. SPACE SCIENCE REVIEWS, 126 (1-4): 113-164 OCT 2006 [2] P. Rouillard et al 2008 submitted Science.

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