Journal article
Solar wind access to lunar polar craters: Feedback between surface charging and plasma expansion
Geophysical research letters, Vol.38(19), L19202
10/2011
DOI: 10.1029/2011GL048880
Abstract
Determining the plasma environment within permanently shadowed lunar craters is critical to understanding local processes such as surface charging, electrostatic dust transport, volatile sequestration, and space weathering. In order to investigate the nature of this plasma environment, the first two‐dimensional kinetic simulations of solar wind expansion into a lunar crater with a self‐consistent plasma‐surface interaction have been undertaken. The present results reveal how the plasma expansion into a crater couples with the electrically‐charged lunar surface to produce a quasi‐steady wake structure. In particular, there is a negative feedback between surface charging and ambipolar wake potential that allows an equilibrium to be achieved, with secondary electron emission strongly moderating the process. A range of secondary electron yields is explored, and two distinct limits are highlighted in which either surface charging or ambipolar expansion is responsible for determining the overall wake structure.
Key Points
The lunar crater‐solar wind interaction is self‐consistently simulated in 2D
The surface‐plasma interaction is critical to the local wake environment
Protons are drawn into the crater by the wake electric field
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Solar wind access to lunar polar craters: Feedback between surface charging and plasma expansion
- Creators
- M. I Zimmerman - Goddard Space Flight CenterW. M Farrell - Goddard Space Flight CenterT. J Stubbs - University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyJ. S Halekas - Space Sciences LaboratoryT. L Jackson - Goddard Space Flight Center
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Geophysical research letters, Vol.38(19), L19202
- DOI
- 10.1029/2011GL048880
- ISSN
- 0094-8276
- eISSN
- 1944-8007
- Number of pages
- 5
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 10/2011
- Academic Unit
- Physics and Astronomy
- Record Identifier
- 9984199925702771
Metrics
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