A three-dimensional, multispecies, comprehensive MHD model of the solar wind interaction with the planet Venus

Abstract

We present our newly developed numerical model of the solar wind interaction with the planet Venus. The model solves three-dimensional, 10-ion-species magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations using a total variation diminishing monotonic upstream scheme for conservation laws, which is implemented on an unstructured grid system. These equations describe the dynamics of both the solar wind and the planetary ionosphere. An excellent performance of the model is verified by comparing our numerical results with the existing numerical and observational data. In particular, profiles of the magnetic field, number densities, velocity, and transterminator flux of ionospheric plasma are shown to reproduce the observational findings. A main goal of this paper is to present the numerical model and its performance for the general dynamics and structures of the solar wind interaction with the ionosphere of Venus. Copyright 2009 by the American Geophysical Union.