TRANSMARS, a kinetic-fluid model of the Martian ionosphere

Olivier Witasse (1) , P.-L. Blelly (2) , Jean Lilensten (3) , François Leblanc (4)

1 ESTEC - European Space Research and Technology Centre
2 LPCE - Laboratoire de physique et chimie de l'environnement
3 LPG - Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble
4 SA - Service d'aéronomie

We present a 1D-model of the dayside ionosphere of Mars, based on a coupling between a kinetic and a fluid code. The kinetic part is a stationary Boltzmann approach, which describes the energetic electron flux. The source may be either the incoming solar wind electrons or the photoelectrons. In this latter case, a photo-production equation is also solved. The fluid part is a 8-moment time-dependent model that solves the transport equations of the different charged species up to the heat flow. This code has been extensively and successfully used to describe the Earth ionosphere. Its adaptation to the Martian conditions implied to make several important physical changes in order to take into account the interaction between the Interplanetary Magnetic Field that drapes the planet and the upper atmosphere. The outputs of the model are compared with measurements performed by Mariner 6, Viking 2 lander, Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Express.

Domaines: Planète et Univers [physics]

Olivier Witasse, P.-L. Blelly, Jean Lilensten, François Leblanc. TRANSMARS, a kinetic-fluid model of the Martian ionosphere. European Planetary Science Congress 2006, 2006, Berlin, Germany. ⟨insu-00358086⟩