HR: 0800h
AN: P41A-0194    [Abstracts]
TI: Modeling the Currents in the Martian Magnetotail due to Ionospheric Electron Transport from Dayside to Nightside
AU: * Ulu\c sen, D
EM: dulusen@stanford.edu
AF: Demet Ulu\c sen, Department of Electrical Engineering, 161 Packard Building, 350 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305-9505, United States
AU: Linscott, I
EM: linscott@stanford.edu
AF: Demet Ulu\c sen, Department of Electrical Engineering, 161 Packard Building, 350 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305-9505, United States
AB: In previous work, we observed seasonal, night time enhancements in the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) electron omnidirectional flux data at low energy levels over the geographical region at the west edge of the crustal fields (at around 70° S and between 30° E and 150° E). We proposed that photoelectrons generated over the crustal sources on the Martian dayside are transported along lines of reconnected Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) to the nightside populating current sheets in the Martian tail. Results of modeling the distribution of current sources in the nightside using magnetic field data during these events and analysis of the estimated draping direction using the dayside magnetic field data supported our proposal. However, observation of the time evolution of this phenomenon is not convenient due to lack of synoptic MGS data. Recently, we have employed simple, empiric flow model based on ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) where the magnetic field is frozen into the plasma, and predict field features and the origin of the observed phenomena. In this paper, we present results of this approach and modeling strategy.
DE: 2700 MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS (6939)
DE: 2784 Solar wind/magnetosphere interactions
DE: 6225 Mars
SC: Planetary Sciences [P]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting