KINETIC MODEL OF THE STELLAR WIND FORCING ON THE EXTENDED HYDROGEN ATMOSPHERE OF THE EXOPLANEt π Men c

Abstract

In this paper, an extension of the kinetic model of the aeronomy of the upper atmosphere of an exoplanet is performed by including the processes of the effect of stellar wind plasma on the extended hydrogen corona of a hot sub-neptune. For this purpose, previously developed kinetic Monte Carlo models were used to study the precipitation of protons and hydrogen atoms with high energies into planetary atmospheres. The kinetic model is adapted to the upper atmospheres of hot sub-neptunes, which made it possible to calculate the rate of absorption of stellar wind plasma energy in the planetary corona and to refine estimates of the non-thermal loss rate of the atmosphere due to the influence of the stellar wind. The calculations carried out for the hot sub-neptune π Men c showed that the energy of a flux of energetic neutral hydrogen atoms (ENA H) penetrating the atmosphere, formed during the charge exchange of stellar wind protons with thermal hydrogen corona atoms, mainly goes to heating the hydrogen corona of a hot exoplanet.