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A Theoretical Study Concerning The Solar Cycle Dependence Of The Nightside Ionosphere Of Venus, Zoltan Dobe, Andrew F. Nagy, Jane L. Fox
A Theoretical Study Concerning The Solar Cycle Dependence Of The Nightside Ionosphere Of Venus, Zoltan Dobe, Andrew F. Nagy, Jane L. Fox
Physics Faculty Publications
We modeled the chemical and physical processes taking place in the nightside ionosphere of Venus by solving the one dimensional coupled continuity and momentum equations for 12 ion species [CO2+, O2+, O+, H+, NO+, CO+, N2+, N+, He+, C+, O+ (²D) and O+ (²P)]. We investigated the relative importance of the two major processes responsible for maintaining the nightside plasma densities: atomic ion transport from the dayside and impact ionization due to energetic electron precipitation. …
Upper Limits To The Nightside Ionosphere Of Mars, Jane L. Fox
Upper Limits To The Nightside Ionosphere Of Mars, Jane L. Fox
Physics Faculty Publications
The nightside ionosphere of Mars could be produced by electron precipitation or by plasma transport from the dayside, by analogy to the Venus, but few measurements are available. We report here model calculations of upper limits to the nightside ion densities on Mars that would be produced by both mechanisms. For the auroral model, we have adopted the downward traveling portions of the electron spectra measured by the HARP instrument on the Soviet Phobos spacecraft in the Martian plasma sheet and in the magnetotail lobes. For the plasma transport case, we have imposed on a model of the nightside thermosphere, …
A Signature Of Auroral Precipitation In The Nightside Ionosphere Of Venus, Jane L. Fox, H. A. Taylor Jr.
A Signature Of Auroral Precipitation In The Nightside Ionosphere Of Venus, Jane L. Fox, H. A. Taylor Jr.
Physics Faculty Publications
We show here that the densities of mass-28 ions measured by the Pioneer Venus Orbiter ion mass spectrometer (OIMS) on the nightside of Venus are highly variable and show little correlation with the values of the O+ densities. We have determined the total production rates of mass-28 ions in the chemical equilibrium region and find that this production rate cannot be explained by known chemical production reactions. We propose that the “excess” production is due to precipitation of electrons into the nightside thermosphere.