Martian magnetism with orbiting sub-millimeter sensor: Simulated
retrieval system
Abstract. A Mars-orbiting sub-millimeter sensor can be used to retrieve the magnetic field at low altitudes over large areas of significant planetary crustal magnetism of the surface of Mars from measurements of circularly polarized radiation emitted by the 368 GHz ground-state molecular oxygen absorption line. We design a full retrieval system for one example orbit to show the expected accuracies on the magnetic field components that one realization of such a Mars satellite mission could achieve. We find that the two horizontal components of the magnetic field can be measured at about 200 nT accuracy, globally, with a vertical resolution of about 4 km from about 6 km up to 70 km in tangent altitude. The method and some of its potential pitfalls are described and discussed.