Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Solar System" in English language version.
The composition of Mercury's exosphere, with its abundant H and He, clearly indicates a strong solar wind source. Once solar wind plasma and particles gain access to the magnetosphere, they predominantly precipitate to the surface, where solar wind species are neutralized, thermalized, and released again into the exosphere. Moreover, bombardment of the surface by solar wind particles, especially energetic ions, contributes to ejection of neutral species from the surface into the exosphere (via "sputtering") as well as other chemical and physical surface modification processes.
The composition of Mercury's exosphere, with its abundant H and He, clearly indicates a strong solar wind source. Once solar wind plasma and particles gain access to the magnetosphere, they predominantly precipitate to the surface, where solar wind species are neutralized, thermalized, and released again into the exosphere. Moreover, bombardment of the surface by solar wind particles, especially energetic ions, contributes to ejection of neutral species from the surface into the exosphere (via "sputtering") as well as other chemical and physical surface modification processes.
The composition of Mercury's exosphere, with its abundant H and He, clearly indicates a strong solar wind source. Once solar wind plasma and particles gain access to the magnetosphere, they predominantly precipitate to the surface, where solar wind species are neutralized, thermalized, and released again into the exosphere. Moreover, bombardment of the surface by solar wind particles, especially energetic ions, contributes to ejection of neutral species from the surface into the exosphere (via "sputtering") as well as other chemical and physical surface modification processes.
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