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1.
Conspicuous excess brightness, exceeding that expected from coronal and zodiacal light (CZL), was observed above the lunar horizon in the Apollo 15 coronal photographic sequence acquired immediately after orbital sunset (surface sunrise). This excess brightness systematically faded as the Command Module moved farther into shadow, eventually becoming indistinguishable from the CZL background. These observations have previously been attributed to scattering by ultrafine dust grains (radius ∼0.1 microns) in the lunar exosphere, and used to obtain coarse estimates of dust concentration at several altitudes and an order-of-magnitude estimate of ∼10−9 g cm−2 for the column mass of dust near the terminator, collectively referred to as model “0”.We have reanalyzed the Apollo 15 orbital sunset sequence by incorporating the known sightline geometries in a Mie-scattering simulation code, and then inverting the measured intensities to retrieve exospheric dust concentration as a function of altitude and distance from the terminator. Results are presented in terms of monodisperse (single grain size) dust distributions. For a grain radius of 0.10 microns, our retrieved dust concentration near the terminator (∼0.010 cm−3) is in agreement with model “0” at z=10 km, as is the dust column mass (∼3–6×10−10 g cm−2), but the present results indicate generally larger dust scale heights, and much lower concentrations near 1 km (<0.08 cm−3 vs. a few times 0.1 cm−3 for model “0"). The concentration of dust at high altitudes (z>50 km) is virtually unconstrained by the measurements. The dust exosphere extends into shadow a distance somewhere between 100 and 200 km from the terminator, depending on the uncertain contribution of CZL to the total brightness. These refined estimates of the distribution and concentration of exospheric dust above the lunar sunrise terminator should place new and more rigorous constraints on exospheric dust transport models, as well as provide valuable support for upcoming missions such as the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE).  相似文献   

2.
Panayotis Lavvas 《Icarus》2009,201(2):626-633
By comparing observations from the Cassini imaging system, UV spectrometer, and Huygens atmospheric structure instrument, we determine an apparent radius of ∼40 nm, an imaginary index <0.3 at 187.5 nm and a number density of ∼30 particles cm−3 for the detached haze layer at 520 km in Titan's mesosphere. We point out that the detached haze layer is coincident with a local maximum in the measured temperature profile and show that the temperature maximum is caused by absorption of sunlight in the detached haze layer. This rules out condensation as the source of the layer. The derived particle size is in good agreement with that estimated for the size of the monomers in the aggregate particles that make up the main haze layer. Calculations of the sedimentation velocity of the haze particles coupled with the derived number density imply a mass flux , which is approximately equal to the mass flux required to explain the main haze layer. Because the aerosol size and mass flux derived for the detached layer agree with those determined for the main layer, we suggest that the main haze layer in Titan's stratosphere is formed primarily by sedimentation and coagulation of particles in the detached layer. This implies that high-energy radical and ion chemistry in the thermosphere is the main source of haze on Titan.  相似文献   

3.
We have analyzed the continuum emission of limb spectra acquired by the Cassini/CIRS infrared spectrometer in order to derive information on haze extinction in the 3–0.02 mbar range (∼150–350 km). We focused on the 600–1420 cm−1 spectral range and studied nine different limb observations acquired during the Cassini nominal mission at 55°S, 20°S, 5°N, 30°N, 40°N, 45°N, 55°N, 70°N and 80°N. By means of an inversion algorithm solving the radiative transfer equation, we derived the vertical profiles of haze extinction coefficients from 17 spectral ranges of 20-cm−1 wide at each of the nine latitudes. At a given latitude, all extinction vertical profiles retrieved from various spectral intervals between 600 and 1120 cm−1 display similar vertical slopes implying similar spectral characteristics of the material at all altitudes. We calculated a mean vertical extinction profile for each latitude and derived the ratio of the haze scale height (Hhaze) to the pressure scale height (Hgas) as a function of altitude. We inferred Hhaze/Hgas values varying from 0.8 to 2.4. The aerosol scale height varies with altitude and also with latitude. Overall, the haze extinction does not show strong latitudinal variations but, at 1 mbar, an increase by a factor of 1.5 is observed at the north pole compared to high southern latitudes. The vertical optical depths at 0.5 and 1.7 mbar increase from 55°S to 5°N, remain constant between 5°N and 30°N and display little variation at higher latitudes, except the presence of a slight local maximum at 45°N. The spectral dependence of the haze vertical optical depth is uniform with latitude and displays three main spectral features centered at 630 cm−1, 745 cm−1 and 1390 cm−1, the latter showing a wide tail extending down to ∼1000 cm−1. From 600 to 750 cm−1, the optical depth increases by a factor of 3 in contrast with the absorbance of laboratory tholins, which is generally constant. We derived the mass mixing ratio profiles of haze at the nine latitudes. Below the 0.4-mbar level all mass mixing ratio profiles increase with height. Above this pressure level, the profiles at 40°N, 45°N, 55°N, at the edge of the polar vortex, display a decrease-with-height whereas the other profiles increase. The global increase with height of the haze mass mixing ratio suggest a source at high altitudes and a sink at low altitudes. An enrichment of haze is observed at 0.1 mbar around the equator, which could be due to a more efficient photochemistry because of the strongest insolation there or an accumulation of haze due to a balance between sedimentation and upward vertical drag.  相似文献   

4.
The MESSENGER Fast Imaging Plasma Spectrometer (FIPS) measured the bulk plasma characteristics of Mercury's magnetosphere and solar wind environment during the spacecraft's first two flybys of the planet on 14 January 2008 (M1) and 6 October 2008 (M2), producing the first measurements of thermal ions in Mercury's magnetosphere. In this work, we identify major features of the Mercury magnetosphere in the FIPS proton data and describe the data analysis process used for recovery of proton density (np) and temperature (Tp) with a forward modeling technique, required because of limitations in measurement geometry. We focus on three regions where the magnetospheric flow speed is likely to be low and meets our criteria for the recovery process: the M1 plasma sheet and the M1 and M2 dayside and nightside boundary-layer regions. Interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions were substantially different between the two flybys, with intense reconnection signatures observed by the Magnetometer during M2 versus a relatively quiet magnetosphere during M1. The recovered ion density and temperature values for the M1 quiet-time plasma sheet yielded np∼1–10 cm−3, Tp∼2×106 K, and plasma β∼2. The nightside boundary-layer proton densities during M1 and M2 were similar, at np∼4–5 cm−3, but the temperature during M1 (Tp∼4–8×106 K) was 50% less than during M2 (Tp∼8×106 K), presumably due to reconnection in the tail. The dayside boundary layer observed during M1 had a density of ∼16 cm−3 and temperature of 2×106 K, whereas during M2 this region was less dense and hotter (np∼8 cm−3 and Tp∼10×106 K), again, most likely due to magnetopause reconnection. Overall, the southward interplanetary magnetic field during M2 clearly produced higher Tp in the dayside and nightside magnetosphere, as well as higher plasma β in the nightside boundary, ∼20 during M2 compared with ∼2 during M1. The proton plasma pressure accounts for only a fraction (24% for M1 and 64% for M2) of the drop in magnetic pressure upon entry into the dayside boundary layer. This result suggests that heavy ions of planetary origin, not considered in this analysis, may provide the “missing” pressure. If these planetary ions were hot due to “pickup” in the magnetosheath, the required density for pressure balance would be an ion density of ∼1 cm−3 for an ion temperature of ∼108 K.  相似文献   

5.
Ethylene (C2H4) emission has been measured in the poles and equator of Jupiter. The 949 cm−1 spectra were recorded with a high resolution spectrometer at the McMath-Pierce telescope at Kitt Peak in October-November 1998 and at the Infrared Telescope Facility at Mauna Kea in June 2000. C2H4 is an important product of methane chemistry in the outer planets. Knowledge of its abundance can help discriminate among the various proposed sets of CH4 photolysis branching ratios at Ly-α, and determine the relative importance of the reaction pathways that produce C2H2 and C2H6. In the equatorial region the C2H4 emission is weak, and we were only able to detect it at high air-mass, near the limb. We derive a peak equatorial molar abundance of C2H4 of 4.5×10−7-1.7×10−6 near 2.2×10−3 mbar, with a total column of 5.7×1014-2.2×1015 molecules cm−2 above 10 mbar depending upon choice of thermal profile. We observed enhanced C2H4 emission from the poles in the regions where auroras are seen in X-ray, UV, and near infrared images. In 2000 we measured a short-term change in the distribution of polar C2H4 emission; the emission in the north IR auroral “hot spot” decreased by a factor of three over a two-day interval. This transient behavior and the sensitivity of C2H4 emission to temperature changes near its contribution peak at 5-10 microbar suggests that the polar enhancement is primarily a thermal effect coupled with vertical transport. Comparing our observations from Kitt Peak and Mauna Kea shows that the C2H4 emission of the northern non-“hot spot” auroral regions did not change over the three-year period while that in the southern polar regions decreased.  相似文献   

6.
The infrared flux of Venus has been observed with a narrowband filter (λ = 3.6 μm, Δλ = 0.08 μm) from 1982 through 1984, covering a range of the phase angle α from 27 to 94°. Normalized values of flux at the Venus-Earth distance of 1 AU were (4.0–5.4) × 10?17W/cm2/cm?1 and the α dependence of the data is rather weak. Furthermore, when the evening terminator of Venus was seen, lower values of flux were obtained in contrast with higher values at the morning terminator. The α dependence is quite different from that of J.V. Martonchik and R. Beer (1975, J. Atmos. Sci.32, 1151–1156). Since we cannot find any significant problem in the two observational methods, the difference might suggest an intrinsic time variation of haze particles during these 10 years in the upper haze layer of the Venus cloud.  相似文献   

7.
Simulations of Titan's atmospheric transmission and surface reflectivity have been developed in order to estimate how Titan's atmosphere and surface properties could affect performances of the Cassini radar experiment. In this paper we present a selection of models for Titan's haze, vertical rain distribution, and surface composition implemented in our simulations. We collected dielectric constant values for the Cassini radar wavelength (∼2.2 cm) for materials of interest for Titan: liquid methane, liquid mixture of methane-ethane, water ice, and light hydrocarbon ices. Due to the lack of permittivity values for Titan's haze particles in the microwave range, we performed dielectric constant (εr) measurements around 2.2 cm on tholins synthesized in laboratory. We obtained a real part of εr in the range of 2-2.5 and a loss tangent between 10−3 and 5×10−2. By combining aerosol distribution models (with hypothetical condensation at low altitudes) to surface models, we find the following results: (1) Aerosol-only atmospheres should cause no loss and are essentially transparent for Cassini radar, as expected by former analysis. (2) However, if clouds are present, some atmospheric models generate significant attenuation that can reach −50 dB, well below the sensitivity threshold of the receiver. In such cases, a 13.78 GHz radar would not be able to measure echoes coming from the surface. We thus warn about possible risks of misinterpretation if a “wet atmosphere” is not taken into account. (3) Rough surface scattering leads to a typical response of ∼−17 dB. These results will have important implications on future Cassini radar data analysis.  相似文献   

8.
Space infrared nulling interferometry has been identified as one of the most promising techniques for direct detection of Earthlike extrasolar planets and spectroscopic analysis of their atmospheres in the near future. After a review of various nulling interferometer schemes, we introduce the concept of internal modulation. As an illustration, we describe a two-dimensional array of telescopes that provides full internal modulation capabilities: the Mariotti space interferometer. It consists of six free-flying telescopes positioned on the sides of an equilateral triangle and grouped into three nulling interferometers. Their nulled outputs are suitably phase-shifted with respect to each other, coherently recombined, and detected. The phase shifts applied between the nullers are periodically changed, providing signal modulation at a frequency that can be selected to minimize instrumental and background noise. The frequency upper limit is set by the read-out noise of the detectors, and turns out to be 10−1-10−2 Hz for currently available Si:As BIB devices. This “fast” signal modulation allows much better monitoring of the background and detector drifts than when one relies solely on the external modulation provided by the slow rotation of the whole interferometer (at typical frequencies of 3×10−4-3×10−5 Hz). Mariotti internal modulation, also known as “phase chopping,” thus appears as a major step toward the feasibility of the Darwin and TPF space missions.  相似文献   

9.
W. Macy 《Icarus》1977,32(3):328-347
Analyses of ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared spectra of Saturn lead to an inhomogeneous atmospheric model, having a clear gas layer which lies above an absorbing particle layer which lies above an ammonia haze layer. The boundary between the clear layer and the absorbing particle layer is at a pressure of 0.2 atm in the equatorial region and 0.3 atm in the temperate region. The boundary between the absorbing particle layer and the haze layer is at the radiative-convective boundary. Observations of ammonia absorption lines indicate that sunlight penetrates the haze to the ammonia sublimation level at a depth of 1.1 atm. Absorbing particles cause the observed decrease in reflectivity from visible to ultraviolet wavelengths. Consideration of the wavelength variation of Mie scattering parameters leads to an upper limit of about 0.2 μm for the particle radii and a particle number density of 103 cm?3. Some possible particle compositions are discussed. Comparison of computed 3-0 and 4-0 band hydrogen quadropole line equivalent widths with observed values leads to a haze layer optical thickness above the ammonia sublimation level of approximately 10. Equivalent widths computed for an equilibrium distribution of states agree better with observed values than those computed for a normal distribution. Methane 3ν3 band manifold equivalent widths are in best agreement with measured equivalent widths for a CH4/H2 abundance ratio of 2 × 10?3, which is 4.5 times the solar C/H ratio.  相似文献   

10.
Previous studies of the photochemistry of small molecules in Titan’s atmosphere found it difficult to have hydrogen atoms removed at a rate sufficient to explain the observed abundance of unsaturated hydrocarbons. One qualitative explanation of the discrepancy nominated catalytic aerosol surface chemistry as an efficient sink of hydrogen atoms, although no quantitative study of this mechanism was attempted. In this paper, we quantify how haze aerosols and macromolecules may efficiently catalyze the formation of hydrogen atoms into H2. We describe the prompt reaction model for the formation of H2 on aerosol surfaces and compare this with the catalytic formation of H2 using negatively charged hydrogenated aromatic macromolecules. We conclude that the PRM is an efficient mechanism for the removal of hydrogen atoms from the atmosphere to form H2 with a peak formation rate of ∼ 70 cm−3 s−1 at 420 km. We also conclude that catalytic H2 formation via hydrogenated anionic macromolecules is viable but much less productive (a maximum of ∼ 0.1 cm−3 s−1 at 210 km) than microphysical aerosols.  相似文献   

11.
Mid-infrared limb spectra in the range 600-1400 cm−1 taken with the Composite InfraRed Spectrometer (CIRS) on-board the Cassini spacecraft were used to determine vertical profiles of HCN, HC3N, C2H2, and temperature in Titan's atmosphere. Both high (0.5 cm−1) and low (13.5 cm−1) spectral resolution data were used. The 0.5 cm−1 data gave profiles at four latitudes and the 13.5 cm−1 data gave almost complete latitudinal coverage of the atmosphere. Both datasets were found to be consistent with each other. High temperatures in the upper stratosphere and mesosphere were observed at Titan's northern winter pole and were attributed to adiabatic heating in the subsiding branch of a meridional circulation cell. On the other hand, the lower stratosphere was much colder in the north than at the equator, which can be explained by the lack of solar radiation and increased IR emission from volatile enriched air. HC3N had a vertical profile consistent with previous ground based observations at southern and equatorial latitudes, but was massively enriched near the north pole. This can also be explained in terms of subsidence at the winter pole. A boundary observed at 60° N between enriched and un-enriched air is consistent with a confining polar vortex at 60° N and HC3N's short lifetime. In the far north, layers were observed in the HC3N profile that were reminiscent of haze layers observed by Cassini's imaging cameras. HCN was also enriched over the north pole, which gives further evidence for subsidence. However, the atmospheric cross section obtained from 13.5 cm−1 data indicated a HCN enriched layer at 200-250 km, extending into the southern hemisphere. This could be interpreted as advection of polar enriched air towards the south by a meridional circulation cell. This is observed for HCN but not for HC3N due to HCN's longer photochemical lifetime. C2H2 appears to have a uniform abundance with altitude and is not significantly enriched in the north. This is consistent with observations from previous CIRS analysis that show increased abundances of nitriles and hydrocarbons but not C2H2 towards the north pole.  相似文献   

12.
Ronen Jacovi 《Icarus》2008,196(1):302-304
Titan's haze, formed by photolysis of C2H2, C2H4 and HCN, was found experimentally to trap Ar, Kr and Xe with efficiencies of 3.5 × 10−4, 1.9 × 10−3 and 6.5 × 10−2 [noble gas atom]/[carbon atom] in the polymer, respectively. The rate of aerosol formation and settling down of 3 × 10−13 kg m−2 s−1, as inferred from our experiments on CH4 photolysis in the far UV [Podolak, M., Bar-Nun, A., 1979. Icarus 39, 272-276], is sufficient to reduce the mixing ratios of 36Ar and 40Ar to their low values of (2.8 ± 0.3) × 10−7 and (4.3 ± 0.1) × 10−3, respectively, and those of Kr and Xe to below the detection limit of 10−8.  相似文献   

13.
R. de Kok  P.G.J. Irwin  N.A. Teanby 《Icarus》2008,197(2):572-578
In Titan's north polar region stratospheric clouds are expected to form due to a combination of low temperatures and downward motion of volatile-enriched air. Here we investigate possible sources of stratospheric clouds at Titan's pole using data from the Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer and a simple condensation model. An upper limit for C4N2 gas was determined to be 9×10−9, which is less than required to make the C4N2 cloud at the Voyager epoch. Hence, the presence of this cloud after equinox remains a mystery. The largest cloud seen in far-infrared spectra has a feature around 220 cm−1 and is located around an altitude of 140 km. The upper limit for propionitrile (C2H5CN) gas shows that the feature around 220 cm−1 is probably not due to pure propionitrile ice. Instead, our model calculations show that HCN should cause by far the largest cloud around 140 km. We therefore propose that HCN ice plays an important role in the formation of the massive polar cloud, because of the unavailability of sufficient condensable gas other than HCN to produce a strong enough condensate feature. However, the signature at 220 cm−1 is not consistent with that of pure HCN ice at 172 cm−1 and mixing of HCN ice with other ices, or chemical alteration of HCN ice might mask the HCN ice signature.  相似文献   

14.
We investigate the chemical transition of simple molecules like C2H2 and HCN into aerosol particles in the context of Titan's atmosphere. Experiments that synthesize analogs (tholins) for these aerosols can help illuminate and constrain these polymerization mechanisms. Using information available from these experiments, we suggest chemical pathways that can link simple molecules to macromolecules, which will be the precursors to aerosol particles: polymers of acetylene and cyanoacetylene, polycyclic aromatics, polymers of HCN and other nitriles, and polyynes. Although our goal here is not to build a detailed kinetic model for this transition, we propose parameterizations to estimate the production rates of these macromolecules, their C/N and C/H ratios, and the loss of parent molecules (C2H2, HCN, HC3N and other nitriles, and C6H6) from the gas phase to the haze. We use a one-dimensional photochemical model of Titan's atmosphere to estimate the formation rate of precursor macromolecules. We find a production zone slightly lower than 200 km altitude with a total production rate of 4×10−14 g cm−2 s−1 and a C/N?4. These results are compared with experimental data, and to microphysical model requirements. The Cassini/Huygens mission will bring a detailed picture of the haze distribution and properties, which will be a great challenge for our understanding of these chemical processes.  相似文献   

15.
We measured the extragalactic 0.7 keV X-ray background by observing the X-ray shadow of a neutral gas cloud in the Magellanic Bridge region. Two ROSAT PSPC observations of total 104 ks were complemented by a detailed H I mapping of the cloud with both the Parkes 64 m telescope and the Australia Telescope Compact Array. From the detected anti-correlation between the observed background intensity and the H I column density of the cloud, we derived the unabsorbed extragalactic background intensity as ∼ 28 keV s−1 cm−2 keV−1 sr−1 at ∼ 0.7 keV. The 95% confidence lower limit 18 keV s−1 cm−2 keV−1 sr−1 is greater than the expected point-like source contribution ? 14 keV s−1 cm−2 keV−1 sr−1, constrained by the mean source spectrum together with the total background intensity in the 1-2 keV band. A significant fraction of the 0.7 keV background likely arises in a diffuse hot intergalactic medium of a few million degrees, as has been predicted in hydrodynamic simulations of cosmological structure formation.Richard McCray  相似文献   

16.
G. Cremonese  M. Bruno  S. Marchi 《Icarus》2005,177(1):122-128
Meteoroid impact has been shown to be a source of sodium, and most likely of other elements, on the Moon. The same process could be also relevant for Mercury. In this work we calculate the vapor and neutral Na production rates on Mercury due to the impacts of meteoroids in the radius range of 10−8-10−1 m. We limit our calculations to this size range, because meteoroids with radius larger than 10−1 m have not to be found important for the daily production of the exosphere. This work is based on a new dynamical model of the meteoroid flux at the heliocentric distance of Mercury, regarding objects in the size range 10−2-10−1 m. This size range, never investigated before, is not affected by nongravitational forces, such as the Poynting-Robertson effect, which is dominant for particles smaller than 10−2 m. In order to evaluate the release of neutral sodium atoms also for smaller meteoroids we have used the distribution reported by M.J. Cintala [1992. Impact-induced thermal effects in the lunar and mercurian regoliths. J. Geophys. Res. 97, 947-973] calculated for particle size range 10−8-10−3 m. We have extrapolated this distribution up to 10−2 m and we have based the impact calculations on a new surface composition assuming 90% plagioclase and 10% pyroxene. The results of our model are that (i) the total mass of vapor produced by the impact of meteoroids in the size range 10−8-10−1 m is 4.752×108 g per year, and (ii) the production rate of neutral sodium atoms is 1.5×1022 s−1.  相似文献   

17.
A global-mean model of coupled neutral and ion chemistry on Titan has been developed. Unlike the previous coupled models, the model involves ambipolar diffusion and escape of ions, hydrodynamic escape of light species, and calculates the H2 and CO densities near the surface that were assigned in some previous models. We tried to reduce the numbers of species and reactions in the model and remove all species and reactions that weakly affect the observed species. Hydrocarbon chemistry is extended to C12H10 for neutrals and C10H+11 for ions but does not include PAHs. The model involves 415 reactions of 83 neutrals and 33 ions, effects of magnetospheric electrons, protons, and cosmic rays. UV absorption by Titan's haze was calculated using the Huygens observations and a code for the aggregate particles. Hydrocarbon, nitrile, and ion chemistries are strongly coupled on Titan, and attempt to calculate them separately (e.g., in models of ionospheric composition) may result in significant error. The model densities of various species are typically in good agreement with the observations except vertical profiles in the stratosphere that are steeper than the CIRS limb data. (A model with eddy diffusion that facilitates fitting to the CIRS limb data is considered as well.) The CO densities are supported by the O+ flux from Saturn's magnetosphere. The ionosphere includes a peak at 80 km formed by the cosmic rays, steplike layers at 500-700 and 700-900 km and a peak at 1060 km (SZA = 60°). Nighttime densities of major ions agree with the INMS data. Ion chemistry dominates in the production of bicyclic aromatic hydrocarbons above 600 km. The model estimates of heavy positive and negative ions are in reasonable agreement with the Cassini results. The major haze production is in the reactions C6H + C4H2, C3N + C4H2, and condensation of hydrocarbons below 100 km. Overall, precipitation rate of the photochemical products is equal to 4-7 kg cm−2 Byr−1 (50-90 m Byr−1 while the global-mean depth of the organic sediments is ∼3 m). Escape rates of methane and hydrogen are 2.9 and 1.4 kg cm−2 Byr−1, respectively. The model does not support the low C/N ratio observed by the Huygens ACP in Titan's haze.  相似文献   

18.
We consider the spatial-temporal properties of the speckle patterns formed when coherent radio waves are scattered by planets. At a speckle diameter of only a few kilometers, the speckle patterns are shown to be displaced in frozen form by distances larger than the Earths diameter due to the spin-orbital motion; i.e., long-range coherence of the radar field takes place. We estimate the coherence losses of the echo signals from Mercury due to the decorrelation of the patterns, which do not exceed or comparable to 10-4 in order of magnitude for ground-based interferometers. Such small losses imply a high degree of frozenness of the speckle pattern everywhere within the Earth, i.e., on a global scale. This allows us to formulate and solve the unprecedented problems of precision measurements of the instantaneous spin vector components for terrestrial planets by using radars distributed all over the globe.Translated from Astronomicheskii Vestnik, Vol. 38, No. 6, 2004, pp. 513–518.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2004 by Kholin.  相似文献   

19.
H Lammer  P Wurz  R Killen  S Massetti  A Milillo 《Icarus》2003,166(2):238-247
Mercury's close orbit around the Sun, its weak intrinsic magnetic field and the absence of an atmosphere (Psurface<1×10−8 Pa) results in a strong direct exposure of the surface to energetic ions, electrons and UV radiation. Thermal processes and particle-surface-collisions dominate the surface interaction processes leading to surface chemistry and physics, including the formation of an exosphere (N?1014 cm−2) in which gravity is the dominant force affecting the trajectories of exospheric atoms. NASA's Mariner 10 spacecraft observed the existence of H, He, and O in Mercury's exosphere. In addition, the volatile components Na, K, and Ca have been observed by ground based instrumentation in the exosphere. We study the efficiency of several particle surface release processes by calculating stopping cross-sections, sputter yields and exospheric source rates. Our study indicates surface sputter yields for Na between values of about 0.27 and 0.35 in an energy range from 500 eV up to 2 keV if Na+ ions are the sputter agents, and about 0.037 and 0.082 at an energy range between 500 eV up to 2 keV when H+ are the sputter agents and a surface binding energy of about 2 eV to 2.65 eV. The sputter yields for Ca are about 0.032 to 0.06 and for K atoms between 0.054 to 0.1 in the same energy range. We found a sputter yield for O atoms between 0.025 and 0.04 for a particle energy range between 500 eV up to 2 keV protons. By taking the average solar wind proton surface flux at the open magnetic field line area of about 4×108 cm−2 s−1 calculated by Massetti et al. (2003, Icarus, in press) the resulting average sputtering flux for O is about 0.8-1.0×107 cm−2 s−1 and for Na approximately 1.3-1.6×105 cm−2 s−1 depending on the assumed Na binding energies, regolith content, sputtering agents and solar activity. By using lunar regolith values for K we obtain a sputtering flux of about 1.0-1.4×104 cm−2 s−1. By taking an average open magnetic field line area of about 2.8×1016 cm2 modelled by Massetti et al. (2003, Icarus, in press) we derive an average surface sputter rate for Na of about 4.2×1021 s−1 and for O of about 2.5×1023 s−1. The particle sputter rate for K atoms is about 3.0×1020 s−1 assuming lunar regolith composition for K. The sputter rates depend on the particle content in the regolith and the open magnetic field line area on Mercury's surface. Further, the surface layer could be depleted in alkali. A UV model has been developed to yield the surface UV irradiance at any time and latitude over a Mercury year. Seasonal and diurnal variations are calculated, and Photon Stimulated Desorption (PSD) fluxes along Mercury's orbit are evaluated. A solar UV hotspot is created towards perihelion, with significant average PSD particle release rates and Na fluxes of about 3.0×106 cm−2 s−1. The average source rates for Na particles released by PSD are about 1×1024 s−1. By using the laboratory obtained data of Madey et al. (1998, J. Geophys. Res. 103, 5873-5887) for the calculation of the PSD flux of K atoms we get fluxes in the order of about 104 cm−2 s−1 along Mercury's orbit. However, these values may be to high since they are based on idealized smooth surface conditions in the laboratory and do not include the roughness and porosity of Mercury's regolith. Further, the lack of an ionosphere and Mercury's small, temporally and spatially highly variable magnetosphere can result in a large and rapid increase of exospheric particles, especially Na in Mercury's exosphere. Our study suggests that the average total source rates for the exosphere from solar particle and radiation induced surface processes during quiet solar conditions may be of the same order as particles produced by micrometeoroid vaporization. We also discuss the capability of in situ measurements of Mercury's highly variable particle environment by the proposed NPA-SERENA instrument package on board ESA's BepiColombo Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO).  相似文献   

20.
Buu N. Tran  John J. Chera 《Icarus》2003,162(1):114-124
The photochemical flow reactor (D.W. Clarke et al., 2000, Icarus 147, 282-291) has been modified to minimize the incorporation of oxygen and other impurities in the photoproducts. A mixture of gases that approximate their mixing ratios on Titan (N2, CH4, H2, C2H2, C2H4, and HC3N) (0.98, 0.018, 0.002, 3.5 × 10−4, 3 × 10−4, 1.7 × 10−5, respectively) was irradiated in the flow photochemical reactor using a 185-nm source to give a Titan haze analog as a solid product. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) gave a composition of 93.3% C, 5.3% N, and 1.4% O. Of the 93.3% carbon, high-resolution XPS revealed that 81.2% was present as CH, CC, and CC groups, 12.1% may be CO, CN, CN, CN, and/or CN groups, 5.3% as a CN group. The peak for N was symmetrical and was assigned to the CN while that for oxygen was assigned to the CO and/or the CO group. Some of these assignments were confirmed by FTIR spectroscopy. The polymeric product had a C:N ratio of 17.6, which is significantly greater than that for Titan haze analogs prepared in discharge reactions. When the polymer was exposed to air for seven days the oxygen content increased by 6% along with an increase in the infrared absorption at 1710 cm−1 assigned to the CO group of a ketone. The oxidation is attributed to the reaction of oxygen with free radicals trapped in the polymer matrix. It is proposed that the photochemical initiation of Titan haze formation from compounds formed from starting materials formed high in Titan’s atmosphere is a more plausible model than haze formed in reactions initiated by solely by discharges. These data will be helpful in the interpretation of the data returned from the Huygens probe of the Cassini mission.  相似文献   

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