Abstract Based on the ion, electron and neutral gas observations, performed by five of the six sensors comprising the PLASMAG-1 experiment on board VEGA-1 and -2, the following results are discussed: (1) the existence of the bow shock and its location at ≀ 1.1×106 km for VEGA-1 inbound; (2) the existence of a cometopause and its location at ≀ 1.6×105 km for VEGA-2 inbound; (3) the plasma dynamical processes occurring inside the cometosheath; (4) the phenomena taking place within the cometary plasma region including mass-spectroscopy of cometary ions at distances ≀ 1.5×104 km; (5) the existence of keV electrons near closest approach to the nucleus; and (6) the radial dependence of the cometary neutral gas and the comparison with model calculations, yielding a mean ionization scale length of ≀ 2×106 km and an overall production rate of ≀ 1.3×1030 molecules s−1 for VEGA-1 inbound. The results are also discussed in the context of the other, both remote and in-situ, observations, performed on board the VEGA- and GIOTTO-spacecraft.
First results of plasma and neutral gas measurements from near comet Halley
Advances in Space Research ; 5 , 12 ; 165-174
1985-01-01
10 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English
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