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Magnetosonic Mach number effect of the position of the bow shock at Mars in comparison to Venus

Barabash, S.; Fränz, M.; Lester, M. +3 more

We study the effect of the magnetosonic Mach number on the position of the bow shock (BS) at Mars. The magnetosonic Mach number is calculated from solar wind data obtained by the ACE satellite upstream of Earth and extrapolated to Mars during two intervals, starting in 2005 and 2007, when Mars and Earth were close to opposition. An increased Mach …

Total electron content in the Mars ionosphere: Temporal studies and dependence on solar EUV flux

Withers, Paul; Safaeinili, Ali; Brain, David A. +3 more

Total electron content (TEC) derived from radar signal distortions is a useful tool in probing the ionosphere of Mars. We consider 26 months of data from the subsurface mode of the Mars Express MARSIS instrument and confirm that the TEC dependence on solar zenith angle (SZA) approximately matches Chapman theory. After detrending this dependence, w…

Backscattered solar wind protons by Phobos

Fedorov, A.; Barabash, S.; Lundin, R. +5 more

We report Mars Express (MEX) measurements showing that the regolith-covered Phobos surface backscatters 0.5%-10% of the impinging solar wind protons. Backscattered protons with an energy corresponding to 30%-40% of the solar wind energy injected in the flow are picked up by the solar wind and may cause field disturbances and wave activity. Since a…