The Ionospheric Anomaly Monitoring by Magnetometer And Plasma-probe (IAMMAP) is
one of the scientific instruments for the Compact Advanced Satellite 500-3 (CAS 500-3)
which is planned to be launched by Korean Space Launch Vehicle in 2024. The main
scientific objective of IAMMAP is to understand the complicated correlation between the
equatorial electro-jet (EEJ) and the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) which play
important roles in the dynamics of the ionospheric plasma in the dayside equator region.
IAMMAP consists of an impedance probe (IP) for precise plasma measurement and
magnetometers for EEJ current estimation. The designated sun-synchronous orbit along the
quasi-meridional plane makes the instrument suitable for studying the EIA and EEJ. The
newly-devised IP is expected to obtain the electron density of the ionosphere with
unprecedented precision by measuring the upper-hybrid frequency (fUHR) of the
ionospheric plasma, which is not affected by the satellite geometry, the spacecraft
potential, or contamination unlike conventional Langmuir probes. A set of
temperaturetolerant precision fluxgate magnetometers, called Adaptive In-phase
MAGnetometer, is employed also for studying the complicated current system in the
ionosphere and magnetosphere, which is particularly related with the EEJ caused by the
potential difference along the zonal direction.
Particle-in-cell simulations were performed to understand the interaction of the
solar wind with localized magnetic fields on the sunlit surface of the Moon. The results
indicated a mini-magnetosphere was formed which had a thin magnetopause with the
thickness of the electron skin depth. It was also found that the solar wind penetrated
into the cavity of the magnetosphere intermittently rather than in a steady manner. The
solar wind that moved around the magnetosphere was observed to hit the surface of the
Moon, implying that it may be the cause of the lunar swirl formation on the surface.
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