P. Swaczyna — Page 2

arXiv2014

Assessment of energetic neutral He atom intensities expected from the IBEX Ribbon

Full sky maps of energetic neutral atoms (ENA) obtained with the Interstellar Boundary Explorer revealed a bright, arc-like Ribbon. We compare possible, though as yet undetected, He ENA emission in two models of the Ribbon origin. The models were originally developed for hydrogen ENA. In the first one, ENA are produced outside the heliopause from the ionized neutral solar wind in the direction where the local interstellar magnetic field is perpendicular to the line-of-sight. The second model proposes production at the contact layer between the Local Interstellar Cloud (LIC) and the Local Bubble (LB). The models are redesigned to helium using relevant interactions between atoms and ions. Resulting intensities are compared with possible emission of helium ENA from the heliosheath. In the first model, the expected intensity is ~ 0.014 (cm^2 s sr keV)^-1, i.e., of the order of the He emission from the heliosheath, whereas in the second, the LIC/LB contact layer model, the intensity is ~ (2-7) (cm^2 s sr keV)^-1, i.e., a few hundred times larger. If the IBEX Ribbon needs a source population of He ENA leaving the heliosphere, it should not be visible in He ENA fluxes mainly because of the insufficient supply of the parent He ENA originating from the neutralized solar wind α-particles. We conclude that full-sky measurements of He ENA could give promising prospect for probing the Local Interstellar Medium at the distance of a few thousand AU and create possibility of distinction between above mentioned models of Ribbon origin.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2012

Heavy coronal ions in the heliosphere. II. Expected fluxes of energetic neutral He atoms from the heliosheath

Aims. A model of heliosheath density and energy spectra of alpha-particles and He+ ions carried by the solar wind is developed. Neutralization of heliosheath He+ ions, mainly by charge exchange (CX) with neutral interstellar H and He atoms, gives rise to ~0.2 - ~100 keV fluxes of energetic neutral He atoms (He ENA). Such fluxes, if observed, would give information about plasmas in the heliosheath and heliospheric tail. Methods. Helium ions crossing the termination shock (TS) constitute suprathermal (test) particles convected by (locally also diffusing through) hydrodynamically calculated background plasma flows (three versions of flows are employed). The He ions proceed from the TS towards heliopause (HP) and finally to the heliospheric tail (HT). Calculations of the evolution of alpha- and He+ particle densities and energy spectra include binary interactions with background plasma and interstellar atoms, adiabatic heating (cooling) resulting from flow compression (rarefaction), and Coulomb scattering on background plasma. Results. Neutralization of suprathermal He ions leads to the emergence of He ENA fluxes with energy spectra modified by the Compton-Getting effect at emission and ENA loss during flight to the Sun. Energy-integrated He ENA intensities are in the range ~0.05 - ~50 cm^-2 s^-1 sr^-1 depending on spectra at the TS (assumed kappa-distributions), background plasma model, and look direction. The tail/apex intensity ratio varies between ~1.8 and ~800 depending on model assumptions. Energy spectra are broad with maxima in the ~0.2 - ~3 keV range depending on the look direction and model. Conclusions. Expected heliosheath He ENA fluxes may be measurable based on the capabilities of the IBEX spacecraft. Data could offer insight into the heliosheath structure and improve understanding of the post-TS solar wind plasmas. HT direction and extent could be assessed.

astro-ph.SR↗