Saturn's rings and small moons on the eve of Cassini

Details Saturn's rings and small moons on the eve of Cassini Saturn's rings and small moons on the eve of Cassini

Jul 2003

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2003hst..prop.9809f&link_type=abstract

HST Proposal ID #9809

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Hst Proposal Id #9809 Solar System

Scientific paper

We propose to continue our long-term survey of Saturn's rings and small moons to obtain a coherent set of high resolution, multi-color WFPC2 images of Saturn and its rings during the final year before the arrival of the Cassini spacecraft at Saturn in mid-2004. Our Cycle 6-11 programs {6806, 7427, 8398, 8660, 8802, and 9341} explored the rings from their nearly edge-on aspect {southern hemisphere spring} to summer solstice in late 2002. We now propose to take advantage of the especially favorable viewing geometry of Cycle 12 to obtain UBVRI, F255W, and methane-filter PC images of the rings, small moons, and planet at the lowest phase angle {0.07 degrees} observable to date. A key goal is to measure for the first time the expected sharp spike in the opposition brightness of the rings and small moons, which will characterize the structure and particle properties of the rings and the surfaces of the satellites. We will also follow the chaotic behavior of Prometheus and Pandora, two small moons which may be perturbing each other gravitationally. Here, our goals are to catch the satellites in the act of any new coupled motions and to determine the changes in semimajor axis, eccentricity, and orbital inclination of the moons resulting from their most recent large chaotic interaction in 2000. This will complete our continuous WFPC2 coverage of these moons from 1994 until mid-2004, when Cassini's cameras will at long last surpass the capabilities of the HST. The Cycle 12 observations will also enable us to determine zonal winds and regional variations in Saturn's atmosphere prior to Cassini's arrival.

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