TY - GEN
T1 - A Langmuir probe system on-board the emirates lunar mission s rashid rover
AU - Elsa, S. G.
AU - Bekkeng, T.
AU - Clausen, L.
AU - Adhikari, S.
AU - Eklund, A.
AU - Miloch, W.
AU - Arneodo, F.
AU - Kalos, S.
AU - Manenti, L.
AU - Sharaf, A.
AU - Almaeeni, S.
AU - Almarzooqi, H.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work is part of the framework of the Emirates Lunar Mission (ELM). The ELM is conducted by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), in Dubai, UAE. The ELM is funded by the ICT Fund as part of the Mars 2117 initiative. It is a pleasure to acknowledge the work by V. Espeland (Eidel) and E. Trondsen (UIO) whose efforts have been essential in manufacture and development of the LNG hardware and software. Also, we acknowledge Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste for providing access to its synchrotron radiation facilities and we thank S. Nannarone, N. Mahne, and L. Pasquali for assistance in using beamline BEAR.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 International Astronautical Federation, IAF. All rights reserved.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - The lunar electron sheath is considered the main driver for the transport of dust across the lunar surface. Lunar surface missions have collected large amounts of indirect evidence of this sheath. However, no direct measurement of the density of the low energy electrons, below approximately 10 eV, which would be representative of the photo-electron population close to the lunar surface, has been conducted yet. Measuring the photo-electron density in-situ will allow to determine the yield factor of the lunar surface. If done at several locations on the lunar surface this would provide the ability to spatially map the yield factor and thereby identify areas of greater surface charging and thus potentially enhanced dust movement. A mobile system which would allow to collect such horizontally and vertically resolved photo-electron profiles, would be a major improvement in understanding lunar surface charging, dust transport, and the formation and evolution of the lunar surface plasma sheath. In this paper the Langmuir probe system on-board the Emirates Lunar Mission s Rashid rover is presented. This system consists of four Langmuir probes, distributed across the rover and at heights above ground that they sample the peak densities of the vertical photo-electron distribution. The system design and its operational concepts are presented. Furthermore, the physical challenges, technical feasibility, and the promises such a system holds in view of providing new knowledge about the local lunar plasma environment are discussed.
AB - The lunar electron sheath is considered the main driver for the transport of dust across the lunar surface. Lunar surface missions have collected large amounts of indirect evidence of this sheath. However, no direct measurement of the density of the low energy electrons, below approximately 10 eV, which would be representative of the photo-electron population close to the lunar surface, has been conducted yet. Measuring the photo-electron density in-situ will allow to determine the yield factor of the lunar surface. If done at several locations on the lunar surface this would provide the ability to spatially map the yield factor and thereby identify areas of greater surface charging and thus potentially enhanced dust movement. A mobile system which would allow to collect such horizontally and vertically resolved photo-electron profiles, would be a major improvement in understanding lunar surface charging, dust transport, and the formation and evolution of the lunar surface plasma sheath. In this paper the Langmuir probe system on-board the Emirates Lunar Mission s Rashid rover is presented. This system consists of four Langmuir probes, distributed across the rover and at heights above ground that they sample the peak densities of the vertical photo-electron distribution. The system design and its operational concepts are presented. Furthermore, the physical challenges, technical feasibility, and the promises such a system holds in view of providing new knowledge about the local lunar plasma environment are discussed.
KW - Dust
KW - Langmuir probes
KW - Moon
KW - Plasma sheath
KW - Rover
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M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:85127299487
T3 - Proceedings of the International Astronautical Congress, IAC
BT - IAF Space Exploration Symposium 2021 - Held at the 72nd International Astronautical Congress, IAC 2021
PB - International Astronautical Federation, IAF
T2 - IAF Space Exploration Symposium 2021 at the 72nd International Astronautical Congress, IAC 2021
Y2 - 25 October 2021 through 29 October 2021
ER -