Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Haider, S. A.
• Batista, I. S.
• Abdu, M. A.
• Muralikrishna, P.
• Shah, Siddhi Y.
• Kuroda, T.

Titel

Dust storm and electron density in the equatorial D region ionosphere of Mars: Comparison with Earth's ionosphere from rocket measurements in Brazil

Ist Teil von

• Journal of geophysical research. Space physics, 2015-10, Vol.120 (10), p.8968-8977

Ort / Verlag

Washington: Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2015

Link zum Volltext

Quelle

Wiley Online Library Journals Frontfile Complete

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• We report the first model result for the dust densities and electron densities in the D region ionosphere of Mars for aerosol particles of different sizes during a major dust storm that occurred in Martian Year (MY) 25 at low latitude. These calculations are made at latitude 10°S and solar longitudes (Ls) = 200°, 220°, 250°, and 280° for high, medium, low, and absence of dust storms, respectively. Four corresponding dust layers were found at 50 km, 50 km, 38 km, and 25 km during these events. During high dust storm period, the optical depth and dust density increased by a factor of ~20 from its normal condition. The electron densities estimated for the D region ionosphere of Mars for submicron sized dust particles are largest as compared to that estimated for larger particles. The electron density reduced by ~2 orders of magnitude during high dust storm. The estimated electron density in the clear atmosphere of Mars is compared with measurements of Earth's ionosphere at nearly the same geophysical condition. Key Points First model result of dust layers at Mars First ionospheric result for different size of dust particles First comparison of equatorial D region ionosphere of Mars and Earth