Interplanetary and interstellar dust observed by the Wind/WAVES electric field instrument

Malaspina, D.; Horányi, M.; Zaslavsky, A.; Goetz, K.; Wilson, L. B.; Kersten, K.

doi:10.1002/2013gl058786

Cited by 73 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Malaspina et al [] have recently discussed the voltage pulses produced on Wind/WAVES by dust impacts. The nondetection by this instrument of the fast nanodust discovered by STEREO/WAVES led these authors to suggest an inconsistency between the STEREO and Wind results on nanodust, arguing that both spacecraft were in close proximity and had similar electric field waveform capture capabilities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 70%

The importance of monopole antennas for dust observations: Why Wind/WAVES does not detect nanodust

Meyer‐Vernet

Moncuquet

Issautier

et al. 2014

Geophysical Research Letters

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The charge released by impact ionization of fast dust grains impinging on spacecraft is at the basis of a well‐known technique for dust detection by wave instruments. Since most of the impact charges are recollected by the spacecraft, monopole antennas generally detect a much greater signal than dipoles. This is illustrated by comparing dust signals in monopole and dipole modes on different spacecraft and environments. It explains the weak sensitivity of Wind/WAVES dipole antennas for dust detection, so that it is not surprising that this instrument did not detect the interplanetary nanodust discovered by STEREO/WAVES. We propose an interpretation of the Wind dust data, elsewhere discussed by Malaspina et al. (2014), which explains the observed pulse amplitude and polarity for interstellar dust impacts, as well as the nondetection of nanodust. This proposed mechanism might be the dominant dust detection mechanism by some wave instruments using dipole antennas.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 70%

The importance of monopole antennas for dust observations: Why Wind/WAVES does not detect nanodust

Meyer‐Vernet

Moncuquet

Issautier

et al. 2014

Geophysical Research Letters

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“…Nevertheless, this process cannot explain all the observations of pulses related to dust impacts. For instance, processes producing a positive voltage pulse on a single monopole (or one arm of a dipole) have been observed on S/WAVES [ Zaslavsky et al , ; Le Chat et al , ] and WIND/WAVES [ Malaspina et al , ] and cannot be explained by the theory developed in this article. Physical mechanisms have been proposed to explain STEREO's [ Pantellini et al , ] and WIND's [ Meyer‐Vernet et al , ] observations, but work still remains to provide a complete modeling of these single‐antenna pulses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Floating potential perturbations due to micrometeoroid impacts: Theory and application to S/WAVES data

Zaslavsky

2015

JGR Space Physics

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128

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In situ observation of dust grains from various origins is routinely performed by space missions equipped with radio instruments. These measurements consist in observations of voltage pulses or their spectral signature. It has for long been proposed that one of the mechanisms able to produce these pulses is the collection by the spacecraft of electric charges generated by impact ionization. Here for the first time, a complete theoretical model of how pulses are generated by charge collection is proposed. In the solar wind at 1 AU, the pulses are shown to be shaped by local plasma and photoelectron parameters. However, the situation can be different in hotter or denser plasma environments. We use the data provided by the STEREO/WAVES (S/WAVES) radio instrument onboard the twin STEREO spacecraft to validate our model. We find that the observations indeed strongly support the theory. The proposed model is an important step forward, since it makes it possible to reproduce the shape, timescales, and amplitudes of pulses generated by dust impacts in various space environments. Such a model can be used to infer the dust detection abilities of radio instruments onboard different spacecraft and can help the design of dust detection optimized radio instruments for future missions.

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“…[] interpreted the dipole signal as the voltage jump on the antenna element induced by escaping charges. Their new mechanism is consistent with the amplitude and polarity of the voltage pulses observed on WIND when micron‐sized dust particles impact the spacecraft [ Malaspina et al ., ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Properties of dust particles near Saturn inferred from voltage pulses induced by dust impacts on Cassini spacecraft

Gurnett

Kŭrth

et al. 2014

JGR Space Physics

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The Cassini Radio and Plasma Wave Science (RPWS) instrument can detect dust particles when voltage pulses induced by the dust impacts are observed in the wideband receiver. The size of the voltage pulse is proportional to the mass of the impacting dust particle. For the first time, the dust impacts signals measured by dipole and monopole electric antennas are compared, from which the effective impact area of the spacecraft is estimated to be 4 m 2 . In the monopole mode, the polarity of the dust impact signal is determined by the spacecraft potential and the location of the impact (on the spacecraft body or the antenna), which can be used to statistically infer the charge state of the spacecraft. It is shown that the differential number density of the dust particles near Saturn can be characterized as a power law dn/dr ∝ r μ , where μ~À 4 and r is the particle size. No peak is observed in the size distribution, contrary to the narrow size distribution found by previous studies. The RPWS cumulative dust density is compared with the Cosmic Dust Analyzer High Rate Detector measurement. The differences between the two instruments are within the range of uncertainty estimated for RPWS measurement. The RPWS onboard dust recorder and counter data are used to map the dust density and spacecraft charging state within Saturn's magnetosphere.

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Interplanetary and interstellar dust observed by the Wind/WAVES electric field instrument

Cited by 73 publications

References 30 publications

The importance of monopole antennas for dust observations: Why Wind/WAVES does not detect nanodust

The importance of monopole antennas for dust observations: Why Wind/WAVES does not detect nanodust

Floating potential perturbations due to micrometeoroid impacts: Theory and application to S/WAVES data

Properties of dust particles near Saturn inferred from voltage pulses induced by dust impacts on Cassini spacecraft

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