NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
Electric Field Generation in Martian Dust DevilsTerrestrial dust devils are known to generate electric fields from the vertical separation of charged dust particles. The particles present within the dust devils on Mars may also be subject to similar charging processes and so likely contribute to electric field generation there as well. However, to date, no Marsin situ instrumentation has been deployed to measure electric field strength. In order to explore the electric environment of dust devils on Mars, the triboelectric dust charging physics from the MacroscopicTriboelectric Simulation (MTS) code has been coupled to the Mars Regional Atmospheric ModelingSystem (MRAMS). Using this model, we examine how macroscopic electric fields are generated within martian dust disturbances and attempt to quantify the time evolution of the electrodynamical system.Electric fields peak for several minutes within the dust devil simulations. The magnitude of the electric field is a strong function of the size of the particles present, the average charge on the particles and the number of particles lifted. Varying these parameters results in peak electric fields between tens of millivolts per meter and tens of kilovolts per meter.
Document ID
20170002397
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Barth, Erika L.
(Southwest Research Inst. Boulder, CO, United States)
Farrell, William M.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Rafkin, Scot C. R.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
March 21, 2017
Publication Date
December 21, 2015
Publication Information
Publication: Icarus
Publisher: Elsevier
Volume: 268
ISSN: 0019-1035
Subject Category
Numerical Analysis
Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration
Report/Patent Number
GSFC-E-DAA-TN40228
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNX07AR69G
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
Aeolian processes
atmosphere
Mars
surface

Available Downloads

There are no available downloads for this record.
No Preview Available