Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
1781640 Planetary and Space Science 2010 8 Pages PDF
Abstract

We have used the ion mass analyzer (IMA) and magnetometer (MAG) on Venus Express (VEX) to study escaping O+ during interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs). Data from 389 VEX orbits during 2006 and 2007 revealed 265 samples of high energy pick-up ion features in 197 separate orbits. Magnetometer data during the same time period showed 17 ICMEs. The interplanetary conditions associated with the ICMEs clearly accelerate the pick-up ions to higher energies at lower altitudes compared to undisturbed solar wind. However, there is no clear dependence of the pick-up ion flux on ICMEs which may be attributed to the fact that this study used data from a period of low solar activity, when ICMEs are slow and weak relative to solar maximum. Alternatively, atmospheric escape rates may not be significantly changed during ICME events.

Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering Earth and Planetary Sciences Geophysics
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