Journal: Space Science Reviews

Abbreviation

Space Sci. Rev.

Publisher

Springer

Journal Volumes

ISSN

1572-9672
0038-6308

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Publications 1 - 10 of 68
  • Future Exploration of the Outer Heliosphere and Very Local Interstellar Medium by Interstellar Probe
    Item type: Journal Article
    Brandt, Pontus; Provornikova, Elena; Bale, Stuart D.; et al. (2023)
    Space Science Reviews
    A detailed overview of the knowledge gaps in our understanding of the heliospheric interaction with the largely unexplored Very Local Interstellar Medium (VLISM) are provided along with predictions of with the scientific discoveries that await. The new measurements required to make progress in this expanding frontier of space physics are discussed and include in-situ plasma and pick-up ion measurements throughout the heliosheath, direct sampling of the VLISM properties such as elemental and isotopic composition, densities, flows, and temperatures of neutral gas, dust and plasma, and remote energetic neutral atom (ENA) and Lyman-alpha (LYA) imaging from vantage points that can uniquely discern the heliospheric shape and bring new information on the interaction with interstellar hydrogen. The implementation of a pragmatic Interstellar Probe mission with a nominal design life to reach 375 Astronomical Units (au) with likely operation out to 550 au are reported as a result of a 4-year NASA funded mission study.
  • Small-Scale Solar Magnetic Fields
    Item type: Journal Article
    Wijn, Alfred G. de; Stenflo, Jan Olof; Solanki, Sami K.; et al. (2009)
    Space Science Reviews
  • Geomagnetic Jerks
    Item type: Journal Article
    Mandea, Mioara; Holme, Richard; Pais, Alexandra; et al. (2010)
    Space Science Reviews
  • Magma Ocean, Water, and the Early Atmosphere of Venus
    Item type: Review Article
    Salvador, Arnaud; Avice, Guillaume; Breuer, Doris; et al. (2023)
    Space Science Reviews
    The current state and surface conditions of the Earth and its twin planet Venus are drastically different. Whether these differences are directly inherited from the earliest stages of planetary evolution, when the interior was molten, or arose later during the long-term evolution is still unclear. Yet, it is clear that water, its abundance, state, and distribution between the different planetary reservoirs, which are intimately related to the solidification and outgassing of the early magma ocean, are key components regarding past and present-day habitability, planetary evolution, and the different pathways leading to various surface conditions. In this chapter we start by reviewing the outcomes of the accretion sequence, with particular emphasis on the sources and timing of water delivery in light of available constraints, and the initial thermal state of Venus at the end of the main accretion. Then, we detail the processes at play during the early thermo-chemical evolution of molten terrestrial planets, and how they can affect the abundance and distribution of water within the different planetary reservoirs. Namely, we focus on the magma ocean cooling, solidification, and concurrent formation of the outgassed atmosphere. Accounting for the possible range of parameters for early Venus and based on the mechanisms and feedbacks described, we provide an overview of the likely evolutionary pathways leading to diverse surface conditions, from a temperate to a hellish early Venus. The implications of the resulting surface conditions and habitability are discussed in the context of the subsequent long-term interior and atmospheric evolution. Future research directions and observations are proposed to constrain the different scenarios in order to reconcile Venus’ early evolution with its current state, while deciphering which path it followed.
  • Geology and Physical Properties Investigations by the InSight Lander
    Item type: Review Article
    Golombek, Matthew; Grott, Matthias; Kargl, Günter; et al. (2018)
    Space Science Reviews
  • SEIS: Insight’s Seismic Experiment for Internal Structure of Mars
    Item type: Journal Article
    Lognonne, Philippe; Giardini, Domenico; Zweifel, Peter; et al. (2019)
    Space Science Reviews
    By the end of 2018, 42 years after the landing of the two Viking seismometers on Mars, InSight will deploy onto Mars’ surface the SEIS (Seismic Experiment for Internal Structure) instrument; a six-axes seismometer equipped with both a long-period three-axes Very Broad Band (VBB) instrument and a three-axes short-period (SP) instrument. These six sensors will cover a broad range of the seismic bandwidth, from 0.01 Hz to 50 Hz, with possible extension to longer periods. Data will be transmitted in the form of three continuous VBB components at 2 sample per second (sps), an estimation of the short period energy content from the SP at 1 sps and a continuous compound VBB/SP vertical axis at 10 sps. The continuous streams will be augmented by requested event data with sample rates from 20 to 100 sps. SEIS will improve upon the existing resolution of Viking’s Mars seismic monitoring by a factor of ∼2500 at 1 Hz and ∼200000 at 0.1 Hz. An additional major improvement is that, contrary to Viking, the seismometers will be deployed via a robotic arm directly onto Mars’ surface and will be protected against temperature and wind by highly efficient thermal and wind shielding. Based on existing knowledge of Mars, it is reasonable to infer a moment magnitude detection threshold of Mw∼3 at 40∘ epicentral distance and a potential to detect several tens of quakes and about five impacts per year. In this paper, we first describe the science goals of the experiment and the rationale used to define its requirements. We then provide a detailed description of the hardware, from the sensors to the deployment system and associated performance, including transfer functions of the seismic sensors and temperature sensors. We conclude by describing the experiment ground segment, including data processing services, outreach and education networks and provide a description of the format to be used for future data distribution.
  • Planned Products of the Mars Structure Service for the InSight Mission to Mars
    Item type: Journal Article
    Panning, Mark P.; Lognonne, Philippe; Banerdt, W. Bruce; et al. (2017)
    Space Science Reviews
  • Presolar Grains as Probes of Supernova Nucleosynthesis
    Item type: Review Article
    Liu, Nan; Lugaro, Maria; Leitner, Jan; et al. (2024)
    Space Science Reviews
    We provide an overview of the isotopic signatures of presolar supernova grains, specifically focusing on 44Ti-containing grains with robustly inferred supernova origins and their implications for nucleosynthesis and mixing mechanisms in supernovae. Recent technique advancements have enabled the differentiation between radiogenic (from 44Ti decay) and nonradiogenic 44Ca excesses in presolar grains, made possible by enhanced spatial resolution of Ca-Ti isotope analyses with the Cameca NanoSIMS (Nano-scale Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer) instrument. Within the context of presolar supernova grain data, we discuss (i) the production of 44Ti in supernovae and the impact of interstellar medium heterogeneities on the galactic chemical evolution of 44Ca/40Ca, (ii) the nucleosynthesis processes of neutron bursts and explosive H-burning in Type II supernovae, and (iii) challenges in identifying the progenitor supernovae for 54Cr-rich presolar nanospinel grains. Drawing on constraints and insights derived from presolar supernova grain data, we also provide an overview of our current understanding of the roles played by various supernova types - including Type II, Type Ia, and electron capture supernovae - in accounting for the diverse array of nucleosynthetic isotopic variations identified in bulk meteorites and meteoritic components. We briefly overview the potential mechanisms that have been proposed to explain these nucleosynthetic variations by describing the transport and distribution of presolar dust carriers in the protoplanetary disk. We highlight existing controversies in the interpretation of presolar grain data and meteoritic nucleosynthetic isotopic variations, while also outlining potential directions for future research.
  • The Dynamics of the Extreme Ultraviolet Quiet Sun and Coronal Holes in the Solar Orbiter Era
    Item type: Review Article
    Harra, Louise; Barczynski, Krzysztof; Auchère, Frédéric; et al. (2025)
    Space Science Reviews
    The quiet Sun corona and coronal holes, as seen in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV), host a variety of phenomena that operate over a range of spatial and temporal scales. Dynamic brightenings and jets of at most a few megameters appear to evolve on minute timescales. Coronal structures larger than tens of Mm evolve on much longer, hour timescales. Understanding the characteristics of the quiet Sun corona and coronal holes along with their disparate phenomena will provide important constraints on models that aim to explain how the plasma is heated and how it further expands to form the solar wind. In 2020, the European Space Agency (ESA) Solar Orbiter mission was launched. It features a comprehensive remote-sensing package, which includes two instruments observing in the Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) and UV spectrometer data: the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) that provides high resolution Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) images at 174 $\mathring{A}$; (HRI$_{EUV}$), and the Spectral Imaging of the Coronal Environment (SPICE) spectrometer that enables plasma diagnostics, and the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI) that measures the photospheric magnetic field. These data, alongside a fleet of instruments on the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), Hinode and the Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS), are providing new information on the behaviour and dynamics of the quiet Sun and coronal holes. We will review the latest results and put them in context of describing the physics of coronal heating and solar wind formation.
  • Physicochemical Controls on the Compositions of the Earth and Planets
    Item type: Journal Article
    Sossi , Paolo A.; Hin , Remco C.; Kleine , Thorsten; et al. (2025)
    Space Science Reviews
    Despite the fact that the terrestrial planets all formed from the protoplanetary disk, their bulk compositions show marked departures from that of material condensing from a canonical H2-rich solar nebula. Metallic cores fix the oxygen fugacities (fO2s) of the planets to between ∼5 (Mercury) and ∼1 log units below the iron-wüstite (IW) buffer, orders of magnitude higher than that of the nebular gas. Their oxidised character is coupled with a lack of volatile elements with respect to the solar nebula. Here we show that condensates from a canonical solar gas at different temperatures (T0) produce bulk compositions with Fe/O (by mass) ranging from ∼0.93 (T0=1250 K) to ∼0.81 (T0=400 K), far lower than that of Earth at 1.06. Because the reaction Fe(s) + H2O(g) = FeO(s) + H2(g) proceeds only below ∼600 K, temperatures at which most moderately volatile elements (MVEs) have already condensed, oxidised planets are expected to be rich in volatiles, and vice-versa. That this is not observed suggests that planets i) did not accrete from equilibrium nebular condensates and/or ii) underwent additional volatile depletion/fO2 changes at conditions distinct from those of the solar nebula. Indeed, MVE abundances in small telluric bodies (Moon, Vesta) are consistent with evaporation/condensation at ΔIW-1 and ∼1400–1800 K, while the extent of mass-dependent isotopic fractionation observed implies this occurred near- or at equilibrium. On the other hand, the volatile-depleted elemental- yet near-chondritic isotopic compositions of larger telluric bodies (Earth, Mars) reflect mixing of bodies that had themselves experienced different extents of volatile depletion, overprinted by accretion of volatile-undepleted material. On the basis of isotopic anomalies in Cr- and Ti in the BSE, such undepleted matter has been proposed to be CI chondrites, which would comprise 40% by mass if the proto-Earth were ureilite-like. However, this would result in an overabundance of volatile elements in the BSE, requiring significant loss thereafter, which has yet to be demonstrated. On the other hand, 6% CI material added late to an enstatite chondrite-like proto-Earth would broadly match the BSE composition. However, because the Earth is an end-member in isotopic anomalies of heavier elements, no combination of existing meteorites alone can account for its chemical- and isotopic composition. Instead, the Earth is most likely made partially or essentially entirely from an NC-like missing component. If so, the oxidised-, yet volatile-poor nature of differentiated bodies in the inner solar system, including Earth and Mars, is a property intrinsic to the NC reservoir.
Publications 1 - 10 of 68