Mirror mode-like structures around unmagnetised planets: a comparison between the magnetosheaths of Mars and Venus

Mirror mode structures arise whenever a temperature anisotropy is present in the plasma, classically in the wake of the bow shock in a quasi-perpendicular configuration with respect to the interplanetary magnetic field, or from pickup ion distribution effects. Born from space plasma instabilities and in competition with other wave modes, these ultra-low frequency waves contribute to energy exchanges between the different plasma populations present in the magnetosheath. At Mars and Venus, such structures have very similar scales: they last typically a few tens of seconds and appear as peaks or dips in the magnetic field data in antiphase with the local plasma density variations. As magnetometers are present on many space missions, magnetic field-only criteria are an ideal tool to study these structures across different magnetosheath environments. We present here for the first time a comparison of the statistical occurrence of magnetosheath mirror mode-like structures at Mars with MAVEN and at Venus with Venus Express. Based on magnetic field-only measurements, we use identical detection criteria at both planets to select quasi-linear structures in B-field measurements. We then present two-dimensional maps of mirror mode-like occurrence rates with respect to solar cycle variations and EUV flux levels, atmospheric seasons (for Mars) and the nature of the shock crossing (quasi-parallel or quasi-perpendicular configurations), and compare them between planets. Finally, we discuss ambiguities in the nature of the detected structures and their global effects on the magnetosheath.