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A New Model of the Crustal Magnetic Field of Mars Using MGS and MAVENWhile devoid of an active magnetic dynamo field today, Mars possesses a remanent magnetic field that may reach several thousand nanoteslas locally. The exact origin and the events that have shaped the crustal magnetization remain largely enigmatic. Three magnetic field data sets from two spacecraft collected over 13 cumulative years have sampled the Martian magnetic field over a range of altitudes from 90 up to 6,000 km: (a) Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) magnetometer (1997–2006), (b) MGS Electron Reflectometer (1999–2006), and (c) Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) magnetometer (2014 to today). In this paper we combine these complementary data sets for the first time to build a new model of the Martian internal magnetic field. This new model improves upon previous ones in several aspects: comprehensive data coverage, refined data selection scheme, modified modeling scheme, discrete-to-continuous transformation of the model, and increased model resolution. The new model has a spatial resolution of ∼160 km at the surface, corresponding to spherical harmonic degree 134. It shows small scales and well-defined features, which can now be associated with geological signatures.
Document ID
20190026599
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
External Source(s)
doi:10.1029/2018JE005854
Authors
Langlais, Benoit ORCID(Laboratoire de Planetologie et Geodynamique de Nantes (LPG) Nantes, France)
Thébault, Erwan (Laboratoire de Planetologie et Geodynamique de Nantes (LPG) Nantes, France)
Houliez, Aymeric ORCID(Koninklijke Sterrenwacht van België Uccle, Belgium)
Purucker, Michael E. (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Lillis, Robert J. ORCID(California Univ. Berkeley, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
June 24, 2019
Publication Date
May 1, 2019
Publication Information
Publication: Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Publisher: American Geophysical Union
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration
Report/Patent Number
GSFC-E-DAA-TN70068
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: EUH-730041
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
Technical Review
Single Expert
Keywords
Magnetic
Nanoteslas
Crustal

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