Solar energetic particle arrival at Mars due to the 27 January 2012 solar storm

On January 27, 2012, an X-class flare brightened on the Sun at 18:15 UT. This event was associated with the generation of a high-energy stream of Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs) advancing along the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) which arrived at Mars in about 39 minutes. A Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) arrived at Mars several days later. The Electron Spectrometer (ELS), a part of the Analyzer of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms (ASPERA-3) experiment on the European Mars Express (MEx) Spacecraft, associatively detected elevated background levels of penetrating particle radiation which abruptly increased above the baseline level by two orders of magnitude within several hours after first arrival, allowing the particle arrival time to be accurately determined from this gradual SEP. As Mars reacted to the SEP, the atmosphere heated driving expansion of the ionosphere.