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Doubly-shadowed regions in lunar polar craters: hydrogen accumulation in the presence of recursive plasma wakes
| Content Provider | NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) |
|---|---|
| Author | Zimmerman, Michael I. Farrell, William M. Stubbs, Timothy J. |
| Copyright Year | 2012 |
| Description | Permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) of the Moon have been identified as unique environments of extreme cold and comprise a natural cold trap for sequestering volatiles [Paige et al. 2010]. The diverse chemical composition of the LCROSS impact plume provided evidence for a volatile-rich and chemically-complex PSR environment [Cola prete et al. 2010, Schultz et al. 2010]. Additionally, the polar electrostatic environment is highly complex, with the possibility of strong, localized electric fields that divert solar wind ions directly into polar cold traps [Farrell et al. 2010, Zimmerman et al. 2011]. Thus, regional plasma physics processes couple directly with volatile sequestration. In the present work, kinetic simulations show that recursive plasma wake structure arises in the presence of step-like topographic features (Le. doubly-shadowed craters). Combining the plasma code with a numerical sputtering model demonstrates that solar wind protons can be either a hydrogen source via implantation or a volatile loss mechanism via sputtering, depending on properties of the regolith and solar wind. The present model provides a novel theoretical pathway toward understanding the lunar surface/solar wind physical and chemical interactions for complex topography near the poles. |
| File Size | 213350 |
| Page Count | 1 |
| File Format | |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | http://archive.org/details/NASA_NTRS_Archive_20120016044 |
| Archival Resource Key | ark:/13960/t2w42rd8w |
| Language | English |
| Publisher Date | 2012-07-17 |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration Craters Ground Wind Plasmas Physics Topography Wakes Chemical Composition Lunar Surface Regolith Electric Fields Solar Wind Plumes Cold Traps Ntrs Nasa Technical Reports Server (ntrs) Nasa Technical Reports Server Aerodynamics Aircraft Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Aeronautic Space Science |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Presentation |
