TY  - JOUR
A1  - Oran, Rona
A1  - Weiss, Benjamin P.
A1  - Santacruz-Pich, Maria De Soria
A1  - Jun, Insoo
A1  - Lawrence, David J.
A1  - Polanskey, Carol A.
A1  - Ratliff, J. Martin
A1  - Raymond, Carol A.
A1  - Ream, Jodie B.
A1  - Russell, Christopher T.
A1  - Shprits, Yuri Y.
A1  - Zuber, Maria T.
A1  - Elkins-Tanton, Linda T.
T1  - Maximum energies of trapped particles around magnetized planets and small bodies
JF  - Geophysical research letters
N2  - Energetic charged particles trapped in planetary radiation belts are hazardous to spacecraft. Planned missions to iron-rich asteroids with possible strong remanent magnetic fields require an assessment of trapped particles energies. Using laboratory measurements of iron meteorites, we estimate the largest possible asteroid magnetic moment. Although weak compared to moments of planetary dynamos, the small body size may yield strong surface fields. We use hybrid simulations to confirm the formation of a magnetosphere with an extended quasi-dipolar region. However, the short length scale of the field implies that energetic particle motion would be nonadiabatic, making existing radiation belt theories not applicable. Our idealized particle simulations demonstrate that chaotic motions lead to particle loss at lower energies than those predicted by adiabatic theory, which may explain the energies of transiently trapped particles observed at Mercury, Ganymede, and Earth. However, even the most magnetized asteroids are unlikely to stably trap hazardous particles.
KW  - asteroid magnetospheres
KW  - (16) Psyche
KW  - Psyche mission
KW  - energetic
KW  - particles
KW  - chaotic motion
KW  - hybrid simulations
Y1  - 2022
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL097014
SN  - 0094-8276
SN  - 1944-8007
VL  - 49
IS  - 13
PB  - American Geophysical Union
CY  - Washington
ER  -