SM048-02
Comparison of Magnetic Field Structure of the Induced Magnetospheres of Mars and Venus

Tuesday, 15 December 2020: 16:04
Virtual
Josephine Johnson1,2, Robin Ramstad3, Yaxue Dong4, Jasper S Halekas5, Yingjuan Ma6, Jared R Espley7, Tielong Zhang8 and David Brain3, (1)Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, Boulder, CO, United States, (2)University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States, (3)Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States, (4)Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, Boulder, United States, (5)University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Iowa City, IA, United States, (6)University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States, (7)Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, United States, (8)Space Research Institute, Graz, Austria
Recorded Presentation
Abstract:
Mars and Venus both lack an Earth-like global intrinsic magnetosphere; instead, each planet’s ionosphere interacts with the solar wind to create induced magnetospheres whose differences have yet to be comprehensibly recognized and understood. To develop a systematic comparison, we map the 3-dimensional magnetic fields at both planets in a coordinate system aligned with the solar wind motional electric field, using magnetometer data from the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) and Venus Express (VEX) missions. We study the magnetic structures’ similarities and differences, such as asymmetries across each planet and changes throughout orbits. We will discuss the similarities in magnetic structure which reveal the underlying forces that shape induced magnetospheres, as well as the differences that provide insight into the significance of individual planetary characteristics on the magnetic field in an induced magnetosphere.
<< Previous Abstract | Next Abstract >>