Astrophysics in 2006

The fastest pulsar and the slowest nova; the oldest galaxies and the youngest stars; the weirdest life forms and the commonest dwarfs; the highest energy particles and the lowest energy photons. These were some of the extremes of Astrophysics 2006. We attempt also to bring you updates on things of which there is currently only one (habitable planets, the Sun, and the Universe) and others of which there are always many, like meteors and molecules, black holes and binaries.     

Deep Impact: Working Properties for the Target Nucleus – Comet 9P/Tempel 1

In 1998, Comet 9P/Tempel 1 was chosen as the target of the Deep Impact mission (A’Hearn, M. F., Belton, M. J. S., and Delamere, A., Space Sci. Rev., 2005) even though very little was known about its physical properties. Efforts were immediately begun to improve this situation by the Deep Impact Science Team leading to the founding of a worldwide observing campaign (Meech et al., Space Sci. Rev., 2005a). This campaign has already produced a great deal of information on the global properties of the comet’s nucleus (summarized in Table I) that is vital to the planning and the assessment of the chances of success at the impact and encounter. Since the mission was begun the successful encounters of the Deep Space 1 spacecraft at Comet 19P/Borrelly and the Stardust spacecraft at Comet 81P/Wild 2 have occurred yielding new information on the state of the nuclei of these two comets. This information, together with earlier results on the nucleus of comet 1P/Halley from the European Space Agency’s Giotto, the Soviet Vega mission, and various ground-based observational and theoretical studies, is used as a basis for conjectures on the morphological, geological, mechanical, and compositional properties of the surface and subsurface that Deep Impact may find at 9P/Tempel 1. We adopt the following working values (circa December 2004) for the nucleus parameters of prime importance to Deep Impact as follows: mean effective radius = 3.25± 0.2 km, shape – irregular triaxial ellipsoid with a/b = 3.2± 0.4 and overall dimensions of ∼14.4 × 4.4 × 4.4 km, principal axis rotation with period = 41.85± 0.1 hr, pole directions (RA, Dec, J2000) = 46± 10, 73± 10 deg (Pole 1) or 287± 14, 16.5± 10 deg (Pole 2) (the two poles are photometrically, but not geometrically, equivalent), Kron-Cousins (V-R) color = 0.56± 0.02, V-band geometric albedo = 0.04± 0.01, R-band geometric albedo = 0.05± 0.01, R-band H(1,1,0) = 14.441± 0.067, and mass ∼7×10¹³ kg assuming a bulk density of 500 kg m⁻³. As these are working values, {i.e.}, based on preliminary analyses, it is expected that adjustments to their values may be made before encounter as improved estimates become available through further analysis of the large database being made available by the Deep Impact observing campaign. Given the parameters listed above the impact will occur in an environment where the local gravity is estimated at 0.027–0.04 cm s⁻² and the escape velocity between 1.4 and 2 m s⁻¹. For both of the rotation poles found here, the Deep Impact spacecraft on approach to encounter will find the rotation axis close to the plane of the sky (aspect angles 82.2 and 69.7 deg. for pole 1 and 2, respectively). However, until the rotation period estimate is substantially improved, it will remain uncertain whether the impactor will collide with the broadside or the ends of the nucleus.     

A lightning swept stroke model: A valuable tool to investigate the lightning strike to aircraft

In the context of lightning strike on the Dassault Falcon family of aircraft, the standard zoning of Falcon 50, 900 and 2000, inferred from FAA and EUROCAE WG31 documents [US Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Advisory Circular AC 20-53A, 1985; US Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Advisory Circular AC 20-53B, Draft, 1991; EUROCAE WG 31, Aircraft Lightning Zoning Standard, ED-91, 1998], has been presented. Zoning proves to be quite similar between the three types of aircraft. Thanks to the feed-back on lightning strikes to Falcon, lightning traces have been observed on the fuselage for different flight conditions and aircraft. Observations are compared with the zoning performed by Dassault. A physical model, developed by ONERA, was used to simulate the sweeping of lightning on the fuselage of a Falcon 900. The results are in good agreement with the lightning traces observed on the fuselages.     

The Martian stratigraphy — Short review and perspectives

The main aspects of the Martian stratigraphy have been determined from the detailed study of Mariner 9 and Viking Orbiter images. Three major stratigraphic systems, the Noachian System, the Hesperian System, and the Amazonian System, are inferred from these studies. The global geological evolution of Mars is essentially derived from its stratigraphy. It reveals that tectonism and volcanism were widespread during two major periods (Noachian and Lower Hesperian) and became more localized during the Upper Hesperian and Amazonian periods. The transition between these two major periods occurred about 2 Ga ago, and significant geologic activity could still be present. However, a number of geologic features and processes remain little understood. Future investigations, including complete high resolution imaging and detailed mapping, geochemical mapping, in situ chemical analyses, etc., will be necessary in order to improve our knowledge of the Martian stratigraphy and geologic evolution and are essential to prepare any future Mars Sample Return mission and the Human Exploration of this planet.     

Very Long Baseline Interferometry: Dependencies on Frequency Stability

Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) is a differential technique observing radiation of compact extra-galactic radio sources with pairs of radio telescopes. For these observations, the frequency standards at the telescopes need to have very high stability. In this article we discuss why this is, and we investigate exactly how precise the frequency standards need to be. Four areas where good clock performance is needed are considered: coherence, geodetic parameter estimation, correlator synchronization, and UT1 determination. We show that in order to ensure the highest accuracy of VLBI, stability similar to that of a hydrogen maser is needed for time-scales up to a few hours. In the article, we are considering both traditional VLBI where extra-galactic radio sources are observed, as well as observation of man-made artificial radio sources emitted by satellites or spacecrafts.     

Characterization and Calibration of the CheMin Mineralogical Instrument on Mars Science Laboratory

A principal goal of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover Curiosity is to identify and characterize past habitable environments on Mars. Determination of the mineralogical and chemical composition of Martian rocks and soils constrains their formation and alteration pathways, providing information on climate and habitability through time. The CheMin X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrument on MSL will return accurate mineralogical identifications and quantitative phase abundances for scooped soil samples and drilled rock powders collected at Gale Crater during Curiosity’s 1-Mars-year nominal mission. The instrument has a Co X-ray source and a cooled charge-coupled device (CCD) detector arranged in transmission geometry with the sample. CheMin’s angular range of 5^° to 50^° 2θ with <0.35^° 2θ resolution is sufficient to identify and quantify virtually all minerals. CheMin’s XRF requirement was descoped for technical and budgetary reasons. However, X-ray energy discrimination is still required to separate Co?Kα from Co?Kβ and Fe?Kα photons. The X-ray energy-dispersive histograms (EDH) returned along with XRD for instrument evaluation should be useful in identifying elements Z>13 that are contained in the sample. The CheMin XRD is equipped with internal chemical and mineralogical standards and 27 reusable sample cells with either Mylar^? or Kapton^? windows to accommodate acidic-to-basic environmental conditions. The CheMin flight model (FM) instrument will be calibrated utilizing analyses of common samples against a demonstration-model (DM) instrument and CheMin-like laboratory instruments. The samples include phyllosilicate and sulfate minerals that are expected at Gale crater on the basis of remote sensing observations.     

Volatile Trapping in Martian Clathrates

Thermodynamic conditions suggest that clathrates might exist on Mars. Despite observations which show that the dominant condensed phases on the surface of Mars are solid carbon dioxide and water ice, clathrates have been repeatedly proposed to play an important role in the distribution and total inventory of the planet’s volatiles. Here we review the potential consequences of the presence of clathrates on Mars. We investigate how clathrates could be a potential source for the claimed existence of atmospheric methane. In this context, plausible clathrate formation processes, either in the close subsurface or at the base of the cryosphere, are reviewed. Mechanisms that would allow for methane release into the atmosphere from an existing clathrate layer are addressed as well. We also discuss the proposed relationship between clathrate formation/dissociation cycles and how potential seasonal variations influence the atmospheric abundances of argon, krypton and xenon. Moreover, we examine several Martian geomorphologic features that could have been generated by the dissociation of extended subsurface clathrate layers. Finally we investigate the future in situ measurements, as well as the theoretical and experimental improvements that will be needed to better understand the influence of clathrates on the evolution of Mars and its atmosphere.     

Potential Effects of Surface Temperature Variations and Disturbances and Thermal Convection on the Mars InSight HP<Superscript>3</Superscript> Heat-Flow Determination

The HP³ instrument on the InSight lander mission will measure subsurface temperatures and thermal conductivities from which heat flow in the upper few meters of the regolith at the landing site will be calculated. The parameter to be determined is steady-state conductive heat flow, but temperatures may have transient perturbations resulting from surface temperature changes and there could be a component of thermal convection associated with heat transport by vertical flow of atmospheric gases over the depth interval of measurement. The experiment is designed so that it should penetrate to a depth below which surface temperature perturbations are smaller than the required measurement precision by the time the measurements are made. However, if the measurements are delayed after landing, and/or the probe does not penetrate to the desired depth, corrections may be necessary for the transient perturbations. Thermal convection is calculated to be negligible, but these calculations are based on unknown physical properties of the Mars regolith. The effects of thermal convection should be apparent at shallow depths where transient thermal perturbations would be observed to deviate from conductive theory. These calculations were required during proposal review and their probability of predicting a successful measurement a prerequisite for mission approval. However, their uncertainties lies in unmeasured physical parameters of the Mars regolith.     

Imaging Plasma Density Structures in the Soft X-Rays Generated by Solar Wind Charge Exchange with Neutrals

Both heliophysics and planetary physics seek to understand the complex nature of the solar wind’s interaction with solar system obstacles like Earth’s magnetosphere, the ionospheres of Venus and Mars, and comets. Studies with this objective are frequently conducted with the help of single or multipoint in situ electromagnetic field and particle observations, guided by the predictions of both local and global numerical simulations, and placed in context by observations from far and extreme ultraviolet (FUV, EUV), hard X-ray, and energetic neutral atom imagers (ENA). Each proposed interaction mechanism (e.g., steady or transient magnetic reconnection, local or global magnetic reconnection, ion pick-up, or the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability) generates diagnostic plasma density structures. The significance of each mechanism to the overall interaction (as measured in terms of atmospheric/ionospheric loss at comets, Venus, and Mars or global magnetospheric/ionospheric convection at Earth) remains to be determined but can be evaluated on the basis of how often the density signatures that it generates are observed as a function of solar wind conditions. This paper reviews efforts to image the diagnostic plasma density structures in the soft (low energy, 0.1–2.0 keV) X-rays produced when high charge state solar wind ions exchange electrons with the exospheric neutrals surrounding solar system obstacles.The introduction notes that theory, local, and global simulations predict the characteristics of plasma boundaries such the bow shock and magnetopause (including location, density gradient, and motion) and regions such as the magnetosheath (including density and width) as a function of location, solar wind conditions, and the particular mechanism operating. In situ measurements confirm the existence of time- and spatial-dependent plasma density structures like the bow shock, magnetosheath, and magnetopause/ionopause at Venus, Mars, comets, and the Earth. However, in situ measurements rarely suffice to determine the global extent of these density structures or their global variation as a function of solar wind conditions, except in the form of empirical studies based on observations from many different times and solar wind conditions. Remote sensing observations provide global information about auroral ovals (FUV and hard X-ray), the terrestrial plasmasphere (EUV), and the terrestrial ring current (ENA). ENA instruments with low energy thresholds (\(\sim1~\mbox{keV}\)) have recently been used to obtain important information concerning the magnetosheaths of Venus, Mars, and the Earth. Recent technological developments make these magnetosheaths valuable potential targets for high-cadence wide-field-of-view soft X-ray imagers.Section 2 describes proposed dayside interaction mechanisms, including reconnection, the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, and other processes in greater detail with an emphasis on the plasma density structures that they generate. It focuses upon the questions that remain as yet unanswered, such as the significance of each proposed interaction mode, which can be determined from its occurrence pattern as a function of location and solar wind conditions. Section 3 outlines the physics underlying the charge exchange generation of soft X-rays. Section 4 lists the background sources (helium focusing cone, planetary, and cosmic) of soft X-rays from which the charge exchange emissions generated by solar wind exchange must be distinguished. With the help of simulations employing state-of-the-art magnetohydrodynamic models for the solar wind-magnetosphere interaction, models for Earth’s exosphere, and knowledge concerning these background emissions, Sect. 5 demonstrates that boundaries and regions such as the bow shock, magnetosheath, magnetopause, and cusps can readily be identified in images of charge exchange emissions. Section 6 reviews observations by (generally narrow) field of view (FOV) astrophysical telescopes that confirm the presence of these emissions at the intensities predicted by the simulations. Section 7 describes the design of a notional wide FOV “lobster-eye” telescope capable of imaging the global interactions and shows how it might be used to extract information concerning the global interaction of the solar wind with solar system obstacles. The conclusion outlines prospects for missions employing such wide FOV imagers.