The formation of sharp edges in planetary rings by nearby satellites

Details The formation of sharp edges in planetary rings by nearby satellites The formation of sharp edges in planetary rings by nearby satellites

Aug 1989

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1989icar...80..344b&link_type=abstract

Icarus (ISSN 0019-1035), vol. 80, Aug. 1989, p. 344-360. Research supported by NSF.

Physics

38

Moonlets, Orbital Mechanics, Planetary Orbits, Planetary Rings, Momentum Transfer, Optical Thickness, Orbital Resonances (Celestial Mechanics), Stream Functions (Fluids), Transport Theory, Planets, Rings, Formation, Satellites, Shepherd Satellites, Boundaries, Calculations, Divisions, Particles, Density, Angular Momentum, Viscosity, Streamlines, Encke Gap, Theoretical Studies, Stress, Wakes, Damping

Scientific paper

Equations are derived which govern the shapes of the perturbed streamlines near the 'sharp edge' boundaries between regions of high and low planetary ring optical depth; these are maintained by the shepherd satellites, which transfer angular momentum to and from ring particles. The results obtained by these equations' solution with a simple numerical model, whose parameters resemble those of the Encke division, are found to faithfully reproduce the sharp edges bounding the division; they imply that the ring thickness in the unperturbed regions far from the edges is of the order of 10 m, and that the angle-averaged surface density varies on a much shorter radial length scale than that over which the satellite torque is applied. This feature's relationship to the local reversal of angular momentum viscous transport, in the most strongly perturbed regions, is demonstrated.

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