view Abstract Citations References Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Model of the Lunar Ionosphere. Well, Herschel ; Barasch, Murray L. Abstract An estimate of a possible lunar ionosphere was made by Herring and Licht [Herring, J. R., and Licht, A. L., Space Research (North-Holland Publishing Company, 1960), pp. 1132-11451, who assumed that protons of the solar wind are re-emitted as slow hydrogen atoms after striking the lunar surface and that charge exchange with the proton stream is a dominant mechanism which converts these atoms to slow protons which, together with electrons from the solar wind, form one component of a lunar ionosphere. The same mechanism is considered here but the simplifying assumptions made by these authors of complete spherical symmetry and an everywhere constant radial velocity for the re-emitted atoms are removed. Different procedures are then necessary and effects of an incident flux coming from only one direction are brought out. The flux continuity equation is solved for the slow proton density after introducing the local velocity and atomic hydrogen density obtained by integrating an appropriate distribution function. Perturbation of the original solar stream by the moon's shadowing is also considered using the above-mentioned distribution function. This perturbed stream forms a second ionospheric component. For typical quiet-sun solar-wind parameters, the resulting ionosphere has a single layer with a maximum electron number density of roughly 350 cm-3 at 0.6 lunar radii above the surface on the moon-sun connecting line. There is only slow variation with angle of the radial location and magnitude of the maximum of the layer until about 600 off this direction; then rapid decreases in both quantities begin. During times of high solar activity the ionosphere according to this model would increase radically. This work was supported by National Aeronautics Space Administration. Publication: The Astronomical Journal Pub Date: June 1962 DOI: 10.1086/108885 Bibcode: 1962AJ.....67R.589W full text sources ADS |