Toward understanding the fate of dust lost from the Martian satellites

The dynamics of small dust grains ejected from the Martian satellites is investigated, considering both the solar radiation perturbation and electromagnetic forces since the grains move in a magnetized plasma. Lorentz forces can dramatically change the nature of the trajectories, resulting in, for example, prolonged lifetimes for submicron-sized grains moving through an idealized model. It is suggested that a permanent, nonuniform and time-dependent dust halo of grains predominantly around 0.1 micron may exist about Mars.