Pushing the Boundaries of 3D Particle-In-Cell Simulations of the Plasma Surrounding an Ablating Meteoroid

Meteor plasma head echoes are frequently observed by high-power large-aperture (HPLA) radar, but to meaningfully deduce meteoroid properties from radar observations, a plasma density distribution must be assumed. 3D electrostatic particle-in-cell simulations can predict this density distribution, including the effects of background fields, winds, and ionosphere conditions. Previous results by Sugar et al. (2019) demonstrate that fields can cause electron density variations of up to 10% in the near-meteoroid region. Additionally, a charge imbalance of up to 15% builds up in this region. Recent computational advances enable larger domain sizes that extend farther from the meteoroid and mitigate boundary effects. In this poster, we present results from a larger domain with 1024 grid cell lengths in all 3 dimensions, improving from 512 in previous medium-sized simulations. The results from the large- and medium-sized domains are nearly identical in the near-meteoroid region, which verifies the previous results from the medium-sized domain. In the large domain, the transition from meteor head to trail is more broadly resolved, along with asymmetries in the electron density profile that result from field interactions and become more pronounced farther from the meteoroid. Furthermore, results from the extended domain size will enable more physically accurate interpretation of meteor head echo radar results.