[ExI] A Geophysics problem

[spike]

-----Original Message-----
From: spike [mailto:spike66 at att.net] 

>>...I was explaining the electric propulsion from LEO up to GEO to someone
recently and he asked what happens to the 20-25 km/s exhaust...Keith
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>...  Right hand rule, B increases as we point the thumb north, right hand
rule suggests the magnetic field of the earth diverts the stream upward
...Cool, time to break out my old friends, Maxwell's equations...spike 

Keith my initial intuition (that those particles would spiral away
westwardly and be gone) I now think is wrong.  While I am trying to figure
that out, a thought occurred to me.  We have data somewhere on this already.
There were experimental ion engines aboard at least two satellites, at least
one of which is unclassified.  The latter re-entered with ion thruster
screaming, but I didn't follow that at the time.  I don't know if they
published articles on what happened to the exhaust particles, but
interaction with the magnetic field should cause Bremsstrahlung radiation.
Fun question.

spike