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A Comparison of the Importance of Electron-Stimulated Desorption of Sodium at Mercury and the MoonWe revisit the importance of Electron-Stimulated Desorption (ESD) as a source of neutral Na and Na+ in the exospheres of Mercury and the Moon. For the first time we have calibrated the ESD yield per electron as a function of electron energy in the energy range 100 - 950 eV. This calibrated yield per electron was convolved with the electron flux as a function of energy onto Mercury's cusps to determine the average release rate of Na+ to the exosphere, using electron flux and cusp area estimates from a recent hybrid magnetosphere model (Lavorenti, 2023). The electron flux and regions open to electrons are quite different at the Moon. Given that previous work showed the ESD yield of ions and neutral atoms are approximately equal, we compared the energy-weighted ESD release of Na+ to that deriving from impact vaporization, photon-stimulated desorption and ion-sputtering.
Document ID
20250005695
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Abstract
Authors
Rosemary M. Killen
(Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, United States)
Jason L. McLain
(University of Maryland, College Park College Park, United States)
Orenthal J. Tucker
(Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, United States)
Liam S. Morrissey
(Memorial University )
Matthew H. Burger
(Space Telescope Science Institute Baltimore, United States)
Ronald J. Vervack
(Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory North Laurel, United States)
Date Acquired
May 30, 2025
Subject Category
Physics (General)
Meeting Information
Meeting: 2025 DPS Meeting
Location: Helsinki
Country: FI
Start Date: September 7, 2025
Sponsors: American Astronomical Society
Funding Number(s)
WBS: 231402.02.02.04.67
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Portions of document may include copyright protected material.
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