MESSENGER X-Ray Observations of Electron Precipitation on the Dayside of Mercury
MESSENGER X-Ray Observations of Electron Precipitation on the Dayside of Mercury
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MESSENGER 对水星阳面电子沉淀的 X 射线观测
DOI：
10.1029/2021ja029675
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发表时间：
2022
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
Lindsay S
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Lindsay S
首次展示了水星表面向阳面的电子感应 X 射线发射图，这些图是通过开发太阳 X 射线通量滤波器生成的。这使得能够分离由可能的电子沉淀驱动的钙的 X 射线荧光。已经生成了此类事件的目录，并绘制了隐含电子降水区的日间地图。我们发现，与夜间的电子感应发射事件类似，这些区域是由纬度和本地磁时间强烈组织的。大多数白天事件出现在南半球，并且在当地黎明（LT 06:00）附近观察到强烈的增强。北部有明显的极地持续排放，但在黄昏半球观察到的事件很少。这些结果通过限制电子沉淀区域对水星磁层、作为外逸层物种的潜在来源的外逸层以及作为 X 射线荧光的额外来源的表面科学具有影响。
The first maps of electron‐induced X‐ray emission from the dayside of Mercury's surface are presented, generated by the development of a solar X‐ray flux filter. This enables the isolation of the X‐ray fluorescence of calcium driven by probable electron precipitation. A catalog of such events has been generated and dayside maps of implied electron precipitation zones have been produced. We find that, similar to electron induced emission events on the nightside, these zones are strongly organized by latitude and magnetic local time. The majority of the dayside events appear in the southern hemisphere and there is a strong enhancement observed centered about local dawn (06:00 LT). There is apparent poleward continuation of emission in the north, but very few events were observed on the duskward hemisphere. These results carry implications for Mercury's magnetosphere by constraining zones of electron precipitation, for the exosphere as a potential source of exospheric species, and for surface science as an additional source of X‐ray fluorescence.