More work

Brief overview with the 'new era of Jovian auroral understanding' ie Steve's ideas on Makenzie's profiles. Yep, there are new ones, lots of them, with interesting things to look at.

One run finished (the last of the set that were running, meaning all I have to do is wait until the new regime is in place and set off the seven old ones again). Saturn5000 was the 12eV SD+1 run. It has been analysed.

Of course, first there is CTIP...

I have just had a look at putting the small increments thing in and it seems ok. Like everything else...

Sigh, "bus errror", should'a known it...

hmmm, will try a few runs on other computers using proton1...

Fails on rimmer

can't compile on C3

Going on keter... on the slow processors...

Trying out 31eV runs whilst waiting. It doesn't dip into the small increments level too deeply at this point, so may or may not avoid bus errors. On the other hand, ramping up the number of electrons fired does invite more errors to show their hand...

...bus error at 100k dammit!

Hmmm, difficult one. The lower energy stuff could probably quite happilly live without the small increments stuff, but the high energy stuff really needs it, otherwise there's the risk of crossing into an unrealistic pressure level. I'll run through the other energies and see if any of them can complete...

...one minor comfort, doing the 46eV lot, is that I do get ionisation in all pressure levels, as hoped.

...bus error at 100k

66eV
...100k again

96eV
...1M this time. Dammit... so close...

140eV
100k

206eV
100k

300eV
1M

440eV
1M

650eV
1M+ (hurray!)

950eV
1M

Don't yet have time to try out:
1380, 2030, 2980, 4400, 6400, 9400, 14000, 20800, 30500

I have actually remembered that since I have to divide all answers by a thousand to account for path length, 100k is more than enough anyway... and the answers (suggesting final peak rates from just shy of 1000 to just shy of 10,000 pcm3) is what is expected.

Must/may also do runs with pitch angle distributions, plus magnetic effects... after all...

Bit of stuff

One run completed today, the Saturn5000 40eV SD+1 run. This was the final 40eV run, and was analysed, recoded and set off as 12eV SD+1, meaning all 12eV SD runs are off, all 40eV runs are done, and, indeed, asides from the 100keV run, and 12eV runs, all is done. Sometime after the first week in March, the 12eV results should start rolling in, though this final run is taking a long while to set off due to TAMPA choosing today to launch mulitple copies of every program they have with no regard for proper submission protocols...

Also did all Howarth's marking.

Quick note

Two completed runs:

Saturn5000 completed the 50eV SD+1 run, was analysed, recoded and set off as the 40eV SD+1 run (with a new 31 day runscript). Analysis saw no grade changes, but it did mean 22 runs were remaining to go - ie twice the number of available slots. Also, all 50eV runs and all 40eV runs were either done or going, indeed that is true for all energies except 12eV.

Saturn40 completed the 40eV SD+C run. This was analysed, recoded and reset off as the 12eV SD+C run. Analysis revealed no grade changes, but overall, we hit the 90% mark, so far as runs done goes.

Also spent half the (satur)day at Mill Hill, helping with the SPA tours.

Another quick note

Two runs finished today.

Saturn500 was the 40eV SD-2 run. This was analysed, recoded and set off as SD-C. This marked the 33 runs left point, meaning if all the runs not yet analysed were run in the eleven slots, they'd be used three times each. It also means that since eleven of them are running, that only twenty-two runs remain to be set off. No grade changes.

Saturn5000 was the 50eV SD+C run. This was analysed, recoded and set off as SD+1. Analysis brought 50eV up to a first, meaning all energies except 12eV are now on a first of one sort or another. 12eV remains a fail.

Bits and bobs

Upgrade to titan's IDL install affected to allow running of Solar2000. Now works

Have been thinking again about the suicidal x-ray problem. Suicidal x-rays refer to the effect that an x-ray flux impacting on a neutral atmosphere will have. The atmosphere gets ionised by the impact, creating electrons. Electrons have a similar size to the wavelength of x-rays, which means Compton scattering cross-sections see their peak in the x-ray region. This, in turn means that x-rays get scattered more by the electrons they create. The effect of scattering is that x-rays lose energy and become EUV or less, meaning the x-ray flux kills itself. The chapman function method of calculating this is to apply the cf and have a compton scattering addition to the path length, ignoring the creation of EUV photons and concurrent destruction of x-rays, not to mention the directional effects of the scattering.

Another thought experiment has included space charges created in the aurorae and the currents created by the churning of background electrons to remove it. Though this effect is well known as it causes the induced currents that knock out powerlines and stations in powerful substorms, the heating effect in the upper atmosphere doesn't seem to be as well considered...

Of course, the majority of the work done today was on the Mars model, getting hold of, interpolating and extrapolating NO ionisation cross-sections. That is nitrogen monoxide, not "no" cross-sections... though the feeling did occur...

Saturn5000 slot run of 50eV in SD+2 mode completed. Analysis raised 50eV grade to 2i. Recoded as SD+C and set off again.