MAVEN Solar Wind Data

I utilize publicly released Level 2 data from the Solar Wind Ion Analyzer (SWIA) and Magnetometer (MAG) on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission to produce synthesized upstream solar wind data sets for use by the scientific community.

Upstream Driver Data

These upstream driver data sets utilize measurements made in the pristine upstream solar wind, as determined by an algorithm developed by Halekas et al. 2017. I provide both an orbit-averaged version of the data set and a high-resolution (300 pts per orbit) version of the data set, in ASCII and tplot_save formats, in the links below.

In the ASCII file, the columns are UT, n_proton, n_alpha (per cc), |v_proton|, vx, vy, vz (km/s), T_proton (eV), Bx, By, Bz (nT). The corresponding tplot variables are 'npsw', 'nasw', 'vpsw', 'vvec', 'tp', and 'bsw'. All vector quantities utilize MSO coordinates.

Anyone wishing to utilize these upstream driver data for publication purposes should reference the SWIA and MAG instrument papers and the description of the upstream driver algorithm given by Halekas et al. 2017 (references below), and should consider contacting the SWIA and MAG teams for assistance in interpreting the observations.

Penetrating Proton Proxy and Combined Solar Wind Data

A portion of the upstream solar wind undergoes charge exchange reactions with the extended hydrogen exosphere, producing a stream of energetic neutral atoms which retain the same velocity as the solar wind. These ENAs can bypass the bow shock and magnetosheath fields to penetrate deep into the dayside atmosphere, where they undergo charge-changing collisions. The byproducts of these collisions can be detected and used to infer the upstream solar wind density and speed (see references below).

In the link below, I provide a tplot_save file that contains upstream solar wind density and speed data (variables 'npsw' and 'vpsw'), proxy solar wind density and speed data inferred from penetrating protons (variables 'nscn' and 'vpenorb') and a combined solar wind data set created by merging these two measurements and resampling to a uniform two-hour cadence (variables 'ncomb' and 'vcomb').

Combined solar wind data - tplot_save

Anyone wishing to utilize these solar wind data for publication purposes should reference the SWIA instrument paper and the description of the upstream driver algorithm and penetrating proton proxy given by Halekas et al. 2017 (references below), and should consider contacting the SWIA team for assistance in interpreting the observations.

References

Connerney, J.E.P., J. Espley, P. Lawton, S. Murphy, J. Odom, R. Oliversen, D. Sheppard (2015), The MAVEN Magnetic Field Investigation, Space Science Reviews, 195, 257-291.
Halekas, J.S., E.R. Taylor, G. Dalton, G. Johnson, D.W. Curtis, J.P. McFadden, D.L. Mitchell, R.P. Lin, B.M. Jakosky (2015), The Solar Wind Ion Analyzer for MAVEN, Space Science Reviews, 195, 125-151.
Halekas, J.S., R.J. Lillis, D.L. Mitchell, T.E. Cravens, C. Mazelle, J.E.P. Connerney, J.R. Espley, P.R. Mahaffy, M. Benna, B.M. Jakosky, J.G. Luhmann, J.P. McFadden, D.E. Larson, Y. Harada, S. Ruhunusiri (2015), MAVEN observations of solar wind hydrogen deposition in the atmosphere of Mars, Geophysical Research Letters, 42, 8901-8909.
Halekas, J.S. (2017), Seasonal variability of the hydrogen exosphere of Mars, Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 122, 901-911.
Halekas, J.S., S. Ruhunusiri, Y. Harada, G. Collinson, D.L. Mitchell, C. Mazelle, J.P. McFadden, J.E.P. Connerney, J.R. Espley, F. Eparvier, J.G. Luhmann, B.M. Jakosky (2017), Structure, dynamics, and seasonal variability of the Mars-solar wind interaction: MAVEN Solar Wind Ion Analyzer in-flight performance and science results, Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, 122, 547-578.