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The Drivers of the Martian Bow Shock Location: A Statistical Analysis of Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN and Mars Express Observations

Garnier, P.; Génot, V.; Halekas, J. S. +6 more

The Martian interaction with the solar wind leads to the formation of a bow shock upstream of the planet. The shock dynamics appear complex, due to the combined influence of external and internal drivers. The extreme ultraviolet fluxes and magnetosonic Mach number are known major drivers of the shock location, while the influence of other possible…

The Impact of Energetic Particles on the Martian Ionosphere During a Full Solar Cycle of Radar Observations: Radar Blackouts

Witasse, Olivier; Orosei, Roberto; Lester, Mark +13 more

We present the first long-term characterization of ionization layers in the lower ionosphere of Mars (below ∼90 km), a region inaccessible to orbital in-situ observations, based on an analysis of radar echo blackouts observed on Mars Express and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter from 2006 to 2017. A blackout occurs when the expected surface reflecti…

The Influence of Crustal Magnetic Fields on the Martian Bow Shock Location: A Statistical Analysis of MAVEN and Mars Express Observations

Garnier, P.; Génot, V.; Halekas, J. S. +6 more

Previous missions underlined the complex influence of the crustal magnetic fields on the Martian environment, including the plasma boundaries. Their influence on the bow shock is however poorly constrained, with most studies showing North/South differences attributed to the crustal fields, with various conclusions from little to strong variabiliti…

Discrete Aurora on the Nightside of Mars: Occurrence Location and Probability

Luhmann, Janet; Fang, Xiaohua; Jakosky, Bruce +7 more

This paper represents the first attempt to predict the occurrence location and probability of discrete electron aurora on the nightside of Mars. We run a 3-D time-dependent magnetohydrodynamic model to characterize the spatial and temporal dynamics of magnetic field and plasma distributions over the course of one planetary rotation. We perform eig…

Nightside Auroral Electrons at Mars: Upstream Drivers and Ionospheric Impact

Liemohn, Michael W.; Mazelle, Christian; Xu, Shaosui +12 more

Discrete aurorae have been observed at Mars by multiple spacecraft, including Mars Express, Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN), and most recently the United Arab Emirates Hope spacecraft. Meanwhile, there have been studies on the source particles responsible for producing these detectable aurorae (termed "auroral electrons"). By utiliz…

A Two-Spacecraft Study of Mars' Induced Magnetosphere's Response to Upstream Conditions

Edberg, Niklas J. T.; Dimmock, Andrew P.; Sánchez-Cano, Beatriz +5 more

This is a two-spacecraft study, in which we investigate the effects of the upstream solar wind conditions on the Martian induced magnetosphere and upper ionosphere. We use Mars Express (MEX) magnetic field magnitude data together with interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), solar wind density, and velocity measurements from the Mars Atmosphere and Vo…