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Predictions for the Interstellar Dust that Interstellar Probe Could Detect
  • Jonathan Slavin
Jonathan Slavin
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

Corresponding Author:jslavin@cfa.harvard.edu

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Abstract

The proposed Interstellar Probe mission (ISP) will have unprecedented capabilities to detect and characterize interstellar dust flowing into the heliosphere from the surrounding interstellar medium (ISM). Knowledge of that dust has the potential to substantially advance our understanding of interstellar dust in general and the local ISM in particular. However, the flux of dust that can be observed varies due to the evolving heliosphere and the interaction of the charged grains with the heliospheric magnetic field. We will present the results of calculations of the dust density relative to that in the pristine ISM as a function of time and position for a possible trajectory of ISP. We will show how different polarities of the solar wind magnetic field affect the observed flux and how these depend on distance from the Sun.