David A. Brain

University of Colorado Boulder | CUB · Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)

Global view of Mars' / Atmosphere, churning from the / Surface out to space.

Discrete aurora at Mars are characterized as localized, short‐lasting ultraviolet emissions on the nightside. They are caused by the precipitation of accelerated electron along open magnetic field lines and their collision with the Martian atmosphere. Discrete auroral emissions detected by the Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) instrument onbo...

Discrete aurora are sporadic emissions of light originating in Mars upper atmosphere. We report nadir imaging observations from MAVEN's Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph which identify the conditions which trigger electron precipitation causing these events. Prior studies have shown that discrete aurora events in the strong crustal magnetic field re...

The typical subsolar stand‐off distance of Mars' bow shock is of the order of a solar wind ion convective gyroradius, making it highly non‐planar to incident ions. Using spacecraft observations and a test particle model, we illustrate the impact of the bow shock curvature on transient structures which form near the upstream edge of moving foreshock...

Solar extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation, the solar wind, and solar energetic particles (SEPs) are variable sources of ionization and heating to the Martian atmosphere. Mars Atmosphere Volatile Evolution’s (MAVEN's) elliptical orbit provides a means to characterize these solar drivers immediately upstream of Mars. We have calculated the energy flu...

We characterize the nature of magnetic structures in the foreshock region of Mars associated with discontinuities in the solar wind. The structures form at the upstream edge of moving foreshocks caused by slow rotations in the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). The solar wind plasma density and the IMF strength noticeably decrease inside the stru...

We analyze the planetary ion, solar wind, interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), and solar extreme ultraviolet (EUV) irradiance data from the NASA Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission to quantify the variation in ion escape with solar EUV irradiance. With relatively strict constraints on the upstream solar wind and IMF conditions, w...

Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN)'s Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph has identified 278 occurrences of discrete aurora events on Mars, which are patchy, sporadic ultraviolet emissions emanating from the upper atmosphere. We confirm prior results finding that emissions are highly correlated with crustal magnetic fields results, with the...

Extreme space weather events can episodically release solar energetic particles (SEPs) that precipitate into planetary atmospheres, leading to aurora and increased ionization. While the induced magnetosphere of Mars does not substantially obstruct SEP protons, the effect on SEP electrons is not known. We use a test particle model modified for relat...

Plain Language Summary Mars possess localized magnetic fields that are frozen into the crust of the planet and protrude out into space. On the dayside of Mars, the crustal fields interact with the charged particles and magnetic field lines that are emanating away from the Sun known as the solar wind. The processes involved in this interaction creat...

We discuss scientific mysteries in the planetary systems of Uranus and Neptune and argue that magnetosphere-related measurements are key to resolve them. Uranus and Neptune represent a distinct class of planets that remains the least-investigated in the solar system and marks the frontier for a wide range of scientific areas. Several reviews have p...

Induced magnetospheres form around conductive non-magnetized planetary objects (such as the ionospheres of Mars, Venus, Titan, Pluto and comets) in the electrodynamic interaction with a magnetized flowing plasma, such as the solar wind. The resulting induced currents couple the ionosphere and the deflected plasma, thus they provide insight into the...

The Martian plasma environment contains a complex magnetic topology, with contributions from the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) and crustal magnetic fields. The topology can control how plasma is exchanged between the solar wind and the Martian ionosphere. Here we use 7 years of suprathermal electron pitch angle distributions recorded by the M...

This paper evaluates the role of magnetic reconnection in the dayside ionosphere of Mars in the collisional regime and presents some relevant data from the MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) mission. Magnetic reconnection is an important process operating in the solar corona, planetary magnetospheres, and astrophysical plasmas, but most...

We describe a new method to analyze the properties of plasma waves and apply it to observations made upstream from Mars by the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission. The slow measurement cadence of most charged particle instrumentation has limited the application of analysis techniques based on correlations between particle and mag...

Uranus and Neptune are the least-explored planets in our Solar System. This paper summarizes mysteries about these incredibly intriguing planets and their environments spurred by our limited observations from Voyager 2 and Earth-based systems. Several of these observations are either inconsistent with our current understanding built from exploring...

We investigate Martian ultralow frequency (ULF) electromagnetic waves generated by local plasma instabilities below the Martian bow shock. Recent Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) observations have shown that ULF waves generated upstream of the Martian bow shock can propagate down to the upper ionosphere, possibly facilitating heavy io...

The ionospheric electron temperature is important for determining the neutral/photochemical escape rate from the Martian atmosphere via the dissociative recombination of O2⁺. The Langmuir Probe and Waves instrument onboard MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN) measures electron temperatures in the ionosphere. The current paper studies elec...

It is important to include the effects of cold ions when we consider heavy ion outflows from Mars. We here report on statistical properties of heavy ion outflows (including cold ion outflows) observed by Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN in the optical wake region. Using data from July 2015 to December 2017, we statistically investigate the ef...

We investigate the properties of the photoelectron boundary, and its relation to other plasma boundaries observed in the Mars environment and suggests this boundary to be a persistent separator between the ionosphere and the solar wind flow at Mars.

Intrinsic magnetic fields have long been thought to shield planets from atmospheric erosion via stellar winds; however, the influence of the plasma environment on atmospheric escape is complex. Here we study the influence of a weak intrinsic dipolar planetary magnetic field on the plasma environment and subsequent ion escape from a Mars sized plane...

We present a study of the magnetic field in the Martian magnetosheath using data from the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission and provide a proxy for the upstream interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) clock angles based on the sheath field directions. The magnetic field data from MAVEN taken in the sheath region are organized in th...

Magnetic topology is important for understanding the Martian plasma environment, including particle precipitation, energy transport, cold ion escape, and wave‐particle interaction. In this study, we combine two independent but complementary methods in order to determine magnetic topology based on superthermal electron energy and pitch angle distrib...

Planetary habitability is in part determined by the atmospheric evolution of a planet; one key component of such evolution is escape of heavy ions to space. Ion loss processes are sensitive to the plasma environment of the planet, dictated by the stellar wind and stellar radiation. These conditions are likely to vary from what we observe in our own...

The recent discovery of a staggering diversity of planets beyond the Solar System has brought with it a greatly expanded search space for habitable worlds. The Kepler exoplanet survey has revealed that most planets in our interstellar neighborhood are larger than Earth and smaller than Neptune. Collectively termed super-Earths and mini-Neptunes, so...

Plain Language Summary Planetary atmospheres are constantly bombarded by energy and radiation from the Sun, and over time this energy input can strip away an atmosphere to space. This process has been particularly devastating at Mars, where the loss of most of its original atmosphere has left the planet cold and desolate. This loss may have been in...

We report for the first time, simultaneous ion, electron, magnetic field vector and electric field wave measurements made possible by Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN, during ion energy flux spikes in low‐altitude radial crustal magnetic fields on the Mars dayside. Observations show energetic electrons and ions (E > 25 eV) precipitating on ma...

Mars experiences regional and planet-encircling dust storms episodically, during which dust particles are lifted to significantly high altitudes over a broad area of the surface. These dust events intensify atmospheric heating through the absorption of solar radiation, followed by significant alteration of the atmospheric thermal structure and circ...

Without an upstream monitor at Mars to provide a contemporaneous measurement of solar wind conditions, it is useful to have techniques of inferring the upstream solar wind conditions using downstream data. We develop a method to estimate the upstream interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) clock angle, defined as the orientation of the IMF vector in th...

A complex boundary layer with a variety of charged particle and electromagnetic field signatures, including a transition between plasma predominantly of solar wind origin and plasma of planetary origin, lies between the Martian bow shock and the ionosphere. In this paper, we develop and utilize algorithms to autonomously identify and characterize t...

We present a novel method to determine solar wind proxies from sheath measurements at Mars. Specifically, we develop an artificial neural network (ANN) to simultaneously infer seven solar wind proxies: ion density, ion speed, ion temperature, and interplanetary magnetic field magnitude and its vector components, using spacecraft measurements of ion...

On 10 September 2017, some of the strongest solar activity occurred in association with active region 12673 (AR2673), including an X-class solar flare and a fast coronal mass ejection. Although AR2673 was not centrally facing Mars, the activity impacted the local space weather conditions at Mars. We give an overview of observations obtained from th...

The deep Solar Cycle (SC) 23 minimum and the modestly active SC 24 maximum have produced generally weaker solar events and heliospheric conditions. Surprisingly, on September 10, 2017 late in the declining phase of SC 24, some of the strongest solar activity erupted from active region (AR) 12673, including an X-class solar flare and a fast coronal...

Earth, Mars, and Venus, irradiated by an evolving Sun, have had fascinating but diverging histories of habitability. Although only Earth's surface is considered to be habitable today, all three planets might have simultaneously been habitable early in their histories. We consider how physical processes that have operated similarly or differently on...

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN Mission (MAVEN) is currently probing the complex Martian environment. Although main structures arising from the interaction between the solar wind (SW) and the induced magnetosphere of Mars can be described using a steady state picture, time-dependent physical processes modify the response of this obstacle...

Observations of the Mars upper atmosphere made from the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft have been used to determine the loss rates of gas from the upper atmosphere to space for a complete Mars year (16 Nov 2014 – 3 Oct 2016). Loss rates for H and O are sufficient to remove ∼2-3 kg/s to space. By itself, this loss would be...

We report the detection of bright aurora spanning Mars' nightside during the space weather event occurring in September 2017. The phenomenon was similar to diffuse aurora detected previously at Mars, but 25 times brighter and detectable over the entire visible nightside. The observations were made with the Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph, a remote...

In this Letter, we make use of sophisticated 3D numerical simulations to assess the extent of atmospheric ion and photochemical losses from Mars over time. We demonstrate that the atmospheric ion escape rates were significantly higher (by more than two orders of magnitude) in the past at ∼4 Ga compared to the present-day value owing to the stronger...

Cold ion outflow is one of the candidate processes to cause significant atmospheric escape from Mars. We here report on the cold dense heavy ion outflow event observed in Martian-induced magnetotail by Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) on 4 December 2014. In the outflow event, the cold dense heavy ion outflow was observed only in south...

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft observed a strong interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) reaching Mars on 13 September 2017. In this work we analyze the interaction between such an extreme event and the Martian-induced magnetosphere by means of Laboratoire Atmosphères, Milieux et Observations Spatiales Hybrid Simu...

The precipitation of suprathermal electrons is the dominant external source of energy deposition and ionization in the Martian nightside upper atmosphere and ionosphere. We investigate the spatial patterns and variability of ionizing electrons from 115 to 600 km altitude on the Martian nightside, using CO2 electron impact ionization frequency (EIIF...

In this Letter, we make use of sophisticated 3D numerical simulations to assess the extent of atmospheric ion and photochemical losses from Mars over time. We demonstrate that the atmospheric ion escape rates were significantly higher (by more than two orders of magnitude) in the past at $\sim 4$ Ga compared to the present-day value owing to the st...

The Martian magnetosphere is a product of the interaction of Mars with the interplanetary magnetic field and the supersonic solar wind. The location of the bow shock has been previously modeled as conic sections using data from spacecraft such as Phobos 2, Mars Global Surveyor, and Mars Express. The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mi...

We present the effects of the local magnetic field configurations on ions precipitating into the upper atmosphere of Mars using Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) observations. Precipitating pickup planetary heavy ions (O⁺, O⁺2, and CO⁺2) are of particular interest in the Martian plasma environment because they potentially enhance the s...

The magnetic field draping pattern in the magnetosheath of Mars is of interest for what it tells us about both the solar wind interaction with the Mars obstacle and the use of the field measured there as a proxy for the upstream interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) clock angle. We apply a time-dependent, global magnetohydrodynamic model toward quant...

Measurements provided by the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft are analyzed to investigate the Martian magnetotail configuration as a function of interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) BY. We find that the magnetotail lobes exhibit a ~45° twist, either clockwise or counterclockwise from the ecliptic plane, up to a few Mars radi...

Many aspects of the Sun‐Mars interaction have been investigated during solar transient events with measurements from multiple spacecrafts and also simulation efforts. Limited discussion has been paid to magnetic topology response to disturbed upstream conditions. The implications of topology changes include, but are not limited to, the pattern of e...

Global models of the interaction of the solar wind with the Martian upper atmosphere have proved to be valuable tools for investigating both the escape to space of the Martian atmosphere and the physical processes controlling this complex interaction. The many models currently in use employ different physical assumptions, but it can be difficult to...

We perform a survey of 1-Hz waves at Mars utilizing Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft observations for a Martian year. We find that the 1-Hz wave occurrence rate shows an apparent variation caused by masking of the waves by background turbulence during the times when the background turbulence levels are high. To correct for...

The identification of magnetic reconnection on the dayside of Mars has been elusive owing to the lack of comprehensive plasma and field measurements. Here we present direct measurements of dayside in‐situ reconnection signatures by the comprehensive particles and fields package onboard the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft o...

Jupiter's radio emission has been linked to its planetary-scale magnetic field, and spacecraft investigations have revealed that most planets, and some moons, have or had a global magnetic field. Generated by internal dynamos, magnetic fields are one of the few remote sensing means of constraining the properties of planetary interiors. For the Eart...

We present topside ionospheric sounding on the nightside of Mars during the September 2017 solar event by Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding (MARSIS) onboard Mars Express along with complementary dayside observations from Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN). The MARSIS and MAVEN observations during the event sugge...

We study oxygen ion energization in the Mars-solar wind interaction by comparing particle and magnetic field observations on the MAVEN and Mars Express missions to a global hybrid simulation. We find that large-scale structures of the Martian induced magnetosphere and plasma environment as well as the Mars heavy ion plume as seen by multi-spacecraf...

Normal solar wind flows and intense solar transient events interact directly with the upper Martian atmosphere due to the absence of an intrinsic global planetary magnetic field. Since the launch of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission, there are now new means to directly observe solar wind parameters at the planet's orbital l...

Field-aligned electrostatic potentials in the Martian ionosphere play potentially important roles in maintaining current systems, driving atmospheric escape and producing aurora. The strength and polarity of the potential difference between the observation altitude and the exobase (~180 km) determines the energy dependence of electron pitch angle d...

We utilize suprathermal ion and magnetic field measurements from the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission, organized by the upstream magnetic field, to investigate the morphology and variability of flows, fields, and forces in the Mars-solar wind interaction. We employ a combination of case studies and statistical investigations t...

With electron and magnetic field data obtained by the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft, we have identified closed magnetic field lines, with both footpoints embedded in the dayside ionosphere, extending up to 6200 km altitude into the Martian tail. This topology is deduced from photoelectrons produced in the dayside ionosph...

We present multi-instrument observations of the effects of solar wind on ion escape fluxes on Mars based on the MAVEN data from November 1, 2014 to May 15 2016. Losses of oxygen ions through different channels (plasma sheet, magnetic lobes, boundary layer, ion plume) as a function of the solar wind and the interplanetary magnetic field variations w...

Ion loss from the topside ionosphere of Mars associated with the solar wind interaction makes an important contribution to the loss of volatiles from this planet. Data from NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission combined with theoretical modeling are now helping us to understand the processes involved in the ion loss process. Given t...

Much can be learned from terrestrial planets that appear to have had the potential to be habitable, but failed to realize that potential. Mars shows evidence of a once hospitable surface environment. The reasons for its current state, and in particular its thin atmosphere and dry surface, are of great interest for what they can tell us about habita...

Photoelectron peaks in the 20-30 eV energy range are commonly observed in the planetary atmospheres, produced by the intense photoionization from solar 30.4 nm photons. At Mars, these photoelectrons are known to escape the planet down its tail, making them tracers for the atmospheric escape. Furthermore, their presence or absence allow to define th...

Magnetic field lines at Mars act as direct pathways for both energy inflow and ion escape. Local variations in magnetic field topology can therefore directly impact the interaction between the solar wind and the Martian ionosphere. One method of analyzing magnetic topology is through the use of electron pitch angle distributions (PADs). Previous PA...

Daily averaged heavy ion escape rates from HALFSHEL hybrid simulations of the solar wind interaction with the Martian ionosphere are compared to the ion escape rates reported by Brain et al., [2015]. The simulation rates are found to be in agreement with the rates measured by MAVEN. When the simulation rates are adjusted for known variability in th...

Direct interaction between the solar wind (SW) and the Martian upper atmosphere forms a characteristic region, called the induced magnetosphere between the magnetosheath and the ionosphere. Since the SW deceleration due to increasing mass loading by heavy ions plays an important role in the induced magnetosphere formation, the ion composition is al...

We analyze MAVEN observations of magnetic flux ropes embedded in Martian magnetotail current sheets, in order to evaluate the role of magnetotail reconnection in their generations. We conduct a minimum variance analysis to infer the generation processes of magnetotail flux ropes from the geometrical configuration of the individual flux rope axial o...

Mars lacks a global dynamo magnetic field to shield it from the solar wind and solar storms, so may be especially sensitive to changing space weather compared to Earth. Inputs from the Sun and solar wind have been measured continuously at Mars for 20 years, and intermittently for more than 50 years. Observations of the influence of the variable spa...

Humanity has long been fascinated by the planet Mars. Was its climate ever conducive to life? What is the atmosphere like today and why did it change so dramatically over time? Eleven spacecraft have successfully flown to Mars since the Viking mission of the 1970s and early 1980s. These orbiters, landers and rovers have generated vast amounts of da...

Humanity has long been fascinated by the planet Mars. Was its climate ever conducive to life? What is the atmosphere like today and why did it change so dramatically over time? Eleven spacecraft have successfully flown to Mars since the Viking mission of the 1970s and early 1980s. These orbiters, landers and rovers have generated vast amounts of da...

We present multi-instrument observations of the effects of solar irradiance on the upper Martian ionosphere and escape fluxes based on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) data from November 2014 to February 2016. It is shown that fluxes of oxygen ions with E > 30 eV both inside and outside of the Martian magnetosphere are nonsensitiv...

Solar energetic particles (SEPs) can precipitate directly into the atmospheres of weakly magnetized planets, causing increased ionization, heating, and altered neutral chemistry. However, strong localized crustal magnetism at Mars can deflect energetic charged particles and reduce precipitation. In order to quantify these effects, we have developed...

Supporting Information for “The Mars crustal magnetic field control of plasma boundary locations and atmospheric loss: MHD prediction and comparison with MAVEN”. A movie of every 20 minute combined images for the Mars-solar wind interaction during 16 May 2005 as simulated by our time-dependent MHD model. The color contour shows the total magnetic...

We study the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution spacecraft observations of Martian planetary ion escape during two time periods, with the focus on understanding the seasonal variability of Martian ion escape in response to the solar extreme ultraviolet (EUV) flux. We organize the >6 eV O + ion data by the upstream electric field direction to es...

We present results from a global Mars time-dependent MHD simulation under constant solar wind and solar radiation impact considering inherent magnetic field variations due to continuous planetary rotation. We calculate the 3-D shapes and locations of the bow shock (BS) and the induced magnetospheric boundary (IMB) and then examine their dynamic cha...

The response of Mars to the major space weather events called Interplanetary Coronal Mass Ejections (ICMEs) is of interest for both general planetary solar wind interaction studies and related speculations on their evolutionary consequences-especially with respect to atmosphere escape. Various particle and field signatures of ICMEs have been observ...

Analyzing ~1.3 year dataset of O+ ion velocity distribution functions obtained from the Suprathermal and Thermal Ion Composition instrument on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft, we statistically investigate reflections of incident O+ pickup ions (>10 keV) occurring below the Martian bow shock. To quantitatively evaluate...

The Martian magnetotail is a complex regime through which atmospheric particles are lost to space. Our current understanding of Mars’ tail continues to develop with the comprehensive particle and field data collected by Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN). In this work, we identify periods when MAVEN encounters multiple current sheet cro...

We conduct an extended survey of reconnection signatures observed in the Martian magnetotail by the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission. Although it is well established that magnetic reconnection plays a fundamental role in the dynamics of intrinsic magnetospheres, the role of reconnection in the dynamics of induced magnetosphere...

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission has obtained comprehensive particle and magnetic field measurements. The Solar Wind Electron Analyzer provides electron energy-pitch angle distributions along the spacecraft trajectory that can be used to infer magnetic topology. This study presents pitch angle-resolved electron energy shape parame...

We present the Latmos Hybrid Simulation (LatHyS) database, which is dedicated to the investigations of planetary plasma environment. Simulation results of several planetary objects (Mars, Mercury, Ganymede) are available in an online catalogue. The full description of the simulations and their results is compliant with a data model developped in th...

A Mars-orbiting sub-millimeter sensor can be used to retrieve the magnetic field at low altitudes over large areas of significant planetary crustal magnetism of the surface of Mars from measurements of circularly polarized radiation emitted by the 368 GHz ground-state molecular oxygen absorption line. We design a full retrieval system for one examp...

We characterize turbulence in the Mars plasma environment in a global scale for the first time by computing spectral indices for magnetic field fluctuations (slopes in the magnetic field power spectra) and determining how they vary with frequency and in different regions. In the magnetosheath, unlike in the solar wind, we find an absence of the ine...

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) observations show that the global spatial distribution of ions precipitating toward the Martian upper atmosphere has a highly asymmetric pattern relative to the upstream solar wind electric field. MAVEN observations indicate that precipitating planetary heavy ion fluxes measured in the downward sol...

We present MAVEN observations of a giant magnetic flux rope in the Martian dayside ionosphere. The flux rope was observed at an altitude of <300 km, downstream from strong subsolar crustal magnetic fields. The peak field amplitude was ∼200 nT, resulting in the largest difference between the observed magnetic field strength and a model for crustal m...

Measurements provided by the Magnetometer and the Extreme Ultraviolet Monitor (EUVM) onboard the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft together with atomic H exospheric densities derived from numerical simulations are studied for the time interval from October 2014 up to March 2016. We determine the proton cyclotron waves (PCWs)...

The upper atmospheres of unmagnetized solar system bodies interact more directly with their local plasma environment than their counterparts on magnetized bodies such as Earth. One consequence of this interaction is that atmospheric particles can gain energy from the flowing plasma, as well as solar photons, and escape to space. Escape proceeds thr...

Nightside suprathermal electron depletions have been observed at Mars by three spacecraft to date: Mars Global Surveyor (MGS), Mars EXpress (MEX) and the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission. This spatial and temporal diversity of measurements allows us to propose here a comprehensive view of the Martian electron depletions throug...

We report on narrowband electromagnetic waves at frequencies between the local electron cyclotron and lower hybrid frequencies observed by the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft in the Martian induced magnetosphere. The peaked electric field wave spectra below the electron cyclotron frequency were first observed by Phobos-2 i...

In order to better represent Mars-Solar wind interaction, we present an unprecedented model achieving spatial resolution down to 50 km, a so far unexplored resolution for global kinetic models of the Martian ionized environment. Such resolution approaches the ionospheric plasma scale height. In practice, the model is derived from a first version de...

Knowledge of solar wind conditions at Mars is often necessary to study the planet's magnetospheric and ionospheric dynamics. With no continuous upstream solar wind monitor at Mars, studies have used a variety of methods to measure or predict Martian solar wind conditions. In situ measurements, when available, are preferred, but can often be limited...

We present preliminary results and interpretations for Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) observations of magnetosheath-ionospheric boundary oscillations at Mars. Using centrifugal force arguments, we first predict that a signature of fully rolled up Kelvin-Helmholtz vortices at Mars is sheath ions that have a bulk motion toward the Su...

We present initial results of strong field amplitude flux ropes observed by Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission around Mars during the interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) passage on 8 March 2015. The observed durations were shorter than 5 s and the magnetic field magnitudes peaked above 80 nT, which is a few times stronge...

One of the goals of the upcoming MAVEN mission to Mars is to investigate the effects of the crustal remanent fields on the solar wind plasma interaction and the upper atmosphere. The MGS Electron Reflectometer and magnetometer observations can be used to test the idea that, if the future data from the electron spectrometer (SWEA) are separated for...