Reconstruction of the plasmasphere from Moon-based EUV images

Abstract

A two-step algorithm for plasmasphere reconstruction from images obtained from the Moon-based extreme ultraviolet (EUV) imager on the Chang'e-3 mission is described and illustrated using simulation data obtained from a dynamic global core plasma model (DGCPM). According to the line of sight (LOS) integration patterns in Moon-based EUV imaging and the outline characteristics of the images, the equatorial plane plasmapause is reconstructed with the Minimum L Algorithm by adopting a magnetic dipole approximation. Having obtained the plasmapause locations, the quasi three-dimensional (3-D) plasmasphere, which is put into the Genetic Algorithm (GA) as an initial guess, is constructed with a statistical model assuming that the density along a field line is a constant. In this way, the plasmaspheric structure and the quasi 3-D plasmaspheric density are extracted from the Moon-based EUV images. This work provides a feasible and applicable method for data analysis of Moon-based EUV imaging, which is to be realized on the Chang'e-3 mission in the Second Phase of Chinese Lunar Exploration Program. Copyright 2011 by the American Geophysical Union.