Collaborative Research: Planetary Magnetism and Thermochemical Evolution

AST-090206/0909171舒伯特/雷蒙德这项研究将研究水星，火星，月球和木卫三的耦合热化学-磁演化。 在一个项目中，一个专门为在大规模并行计算机上高效运行而编写的数字发电机代码将模拟这些天体在演化过程中的多次磁场。 计算结果将沿着对内禀磁场和地壳磁化的观测，以更好地了解固体行星的热化学演化。 还将利用多种数据集（磁场、重力、地形和地质）对月球和火星的地壳重力和磁异常进行联合反演。 密度和磁化强度分布及其相互关系，以及地质和地形数据，将用于推断改变地壳的过程，例如，这些研究将从根本上帮助我们了解类地行星和卫星如何在地质时期演化，以及它们如何通过内核中的发电机作用产生磁场。 调查还将有助于确定月球和火星上的地壳是如何被磁化的。 通过研究发电机如何在不同的物理条件下运行，在水星和木卫三以及早期火星和月球的情况下，我们将更好地了解地球如何产生磁场。这些活动将应用于许多科学学科，包括行星科学，地球物理学，地球物理流体动力学和地磁学。 该项目将支持两名研究科学家的参与和一名博士的培训。行星科学的学生，他们都是代表性不足的群体的成员。 天文学社区也将受益于这里开发的建模代码的计划发布。

AST-090206/0909171Schubert/RaymondThis research will study the coupled thermochemical-magnetic evolution of Mercury, Mars, the Moon, and Ganymede. In one project, a numerical dynamo code, specifically written to operate efficiently on massively parallel computers, will simulate the magnetic fields of these bodies at many times during their evolution. The calculations will be used along with observations of intrinsic magnetic fields and crustal magnetization to understand better the thermochemical evolution of solid planets. Joint inversions of crustal gravity and magnetic anomalies will also be undertaken for the Moon and Mars using multiple data sets (magnetic field, gravity, topography and geology). The density and magnetization distributions and their correlation, together with geologic and topographic data, will be used to infer the processes that modified the crust, e.g., magnetization or demagnetization by magmatic intrusions.These studies will contribute in a fundamental way to our understanding of how terrestrial planets and moons evolve through geologic time and how they produce magnetic fields through dynamo action in their cores. The investigations will also help determine how the crusts on the Moon and Mars were magnetized. By studying how dynamos can operate under the different physical conditions encountered in the cases of Mercury and Ganymede and in early Mars and the Moon we will better understand how the Earth generates its magnetic field.These activities will have application to many scientific disciplines, including planetary science, geophysics, geophysical fluid dynamics, and geomagnetism. The project will support participation by two research scientists and the training of a Ph.D. student in the planetary sciences, all of whom are members of an underrepresented group. The astronomical community will also benefit from the planned release of the modeling code developed here.