Bridging Model–Data Discrepancies in Mars’ Dayside Ionosphere: Exploring Varying Reaction Rate Coefficients

Abstract

Measurements of concentrations of neutral and ion species in the upper atmosphere of Mars by the Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS) on board the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN mission have served as model input and/or for comparison with model output in numerous earlier studies of the Martian dayside ionosphere. While many models reproduce the altitudinal density profiles of key ion species within a factor of a few, it has proven challenging to achieve a level of agreement within tens of percent for multiple ion species over a wide range of altitudes. We explore means to overcome this issue while keeping with a reduced chemical model and utilizing the assumptions of photochemical equilibrium and that the NGIMS data are devoid of any measurement errors. We entertain, for instance, the idea that the rate coefficient for the charge-transfer reaction between ${{\rm{CO}}}_{2}^{+}$ and O may vary with altitude as a result of a pressure-controlled internal energy distribution of the ${{\rm{CO}}}_{2}^{+}$ population.

Keywords

• Mars
• Planetary ionospheres
• Space plasmas
• Reaction rates