University of New Hampshire University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository Physics Scholarship Physics 2-2015 Dielectric breakdown weathering of the Moon's polar regolith Andrew P. Jordan University of New Hampshire,
[email protected] T. J. Stubbs Goddard Space Flight Center Jody K. Wilson University of New Hampshire,
[email protected] Nathan A. Schwadron University of New Hampshire,
[email protected] Harlan E. Spence University of New Hampshire,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.unh.edu/physics_facpub Part of the Astrophysics and Astronomy Commons Recommended Citation A. P. Jordan, T. J. Stubbs, J. K. Wilson, N. A. Schwadron, and H. E. Spence, ‘Dielectric breakdown weathering of the Moon’s polar regolith’, Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, vol. 120, no. 2, pp. 210–225, Feb. 2015. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Physics at University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Physics Scholarship by an authorized administrator of University of New Hampshire Scholars' Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. JournalofGeophysicalResearch: Planets RESEARCH ARTICLE Dielectric breakdown weathering of the Moon’s polar regolith 10.1002/2014JE004710 A. P.Jordan1,2, T. J. Stubbs2,3, J. K. Wilson1,2, N. A. Schwadron1,2, and H. E. Spence1,2 Key Points: 1 • Large solar energetic particle Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA, 2 events may cause breakdown in Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA, lunar regolith 3NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA • We estimate the rate of these breakdown-causing particle events • Breakdown weathering may change the properties of polar regolith Abstract Galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles (SEPs) can charge the Moon’s subsurface, a process expected to be particularly important in the polar regions.