Venus Express observations of atmospheric oxygen escape during the passage of several coronal mass ejections

Abstract

The solar wind interaction contributes to the loss of Venus atmospheric constituents, especially oxygen, by direct antisunward acceleration of planetary ions and possibly by related sputtering of neutrals. Both comet‐like “ion pickup” and related sputtering processes may have played a key role in Venus' atmosphere evolution, but the significance of their effects, as well as other proposed escape mechanisms, is still uncertain. In particular, recent reports of only modest ion escape rates measured on Venus Express (VEX) during the current low‐activity phase of the solar cycle make it important to reconsider the evidence seen in both Pioneer Venus Orbiter and VEX observations suggesting significantly enhanced escaping O+ ion fluxes during periods of disturbed interplanetary conditions. At present, the most extreme interplanetary conditions result from the effects of coronal mass ejections (CME), which may have been more prevalent in the first 1–2 billion years of the Sun's history. The Analyser of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms 4 (ASPERA‐4) Ion Mass Analyzer and Magnetometer on Venus Express have now made detailed measurements during several periods when CME disturbances encountered Venus. The observations and models described in this report provide further insights into the possible response of oxygen ion escape to solar activity. In particular, they illustrate nuances of in situ sampling of large‐gyroradius pickup ions, related to the atmospheric source properties, spacecraft orbit geometry, and the prevailing interplanetary conditions, that make the estimation of the variable global escape fluxes due to that process particularly challenging. In three of the four cases examined in some detail, ionospheric oxygen ions were either unobservable or below the limit of detectability for passes well within interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) intervals. In the fourth example, where ionospheric ions were observed as expected from the model, O+ pickup ions were observed in greater abundance than is typical in undisturbed solar wind. Other escape processes are not considered here, although it is assumed the source population for the modeled pickup ions is a preaccelerated upper atmosphere component. Analysis of many more ICME events, expected to be obtained as the Sun becomes more active in future years, are necessary to resolve the question of the importance of ICME to Venus oxygen escape.