Charged particle sputtering of ice surfaces in Saturn's magnetosphere

Details Charged particle sputtering of ice surfaces in Saturn's magnetosphere Charged particle sputtering of ice surfaces in Saturn's magnetosphere

Jun 1982

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1982jgr....87.4567c&link_type=abstract

Journal of Geophysical Research, vol. 87, June 1, 1982, p. 4567-4570.

Physics

37

Atmospheric Physics, Charged Particles, Ice, Planetary Magnetospheres, Saturn Atmosphere, Sputtering, Diffusion Coefficient, Erosion, Iue, Magnetospheric Ion Density, Pioneer 11 Space Probe, Saturn Rings, Saturn Satellites, Saturn, Magnetosphere, Ice, Surface, Sputtering, Charged Particles, Pioneer 11, Voyager 1, Voyager 2, Iue, International Ultraviolet Explorer, Ions, Source, Hydrogen, Experiments, Dissociation, Temperature, Flux, E Ring, Satellites, Rings, Dione, Tethys, Ionization, Water, Lecp, Hypothes

Scientific paper

Following recent investigations of the Saturn system in situ by Pioneer 11 and Voyager 1 and 2 and remotely by the International Ultraviolet Explorer, the sputtering of water ice surfaces by magnetospheric ions has been reconsidered as a possible source of hydrogen atoms and heavy ions. Results from laboratory measurements of water ice sputtering and dissociation rates as a function of ice temperature are used, as well as Voyager charged particle data from the low energy charged particle experiment to obtain more accurate assessments of energetic ion fluxes and loss rates. Ion phase space densities show that, if charged particle sputtering is an important physical process, it will occur predominantly in the vicinity of Saturn's E ring and the moons Dione and Tethys, not at the outer edge of the A ring as previously suggested prior to the availability of in situ data. Charged particle sputtering of ice surfaces between 4.5 and 8 Saturnian radii followed by the ionization of H2O and dissociation fragments, may be an important local source of the heavy ion plasma reported in the magnetosphere by Pioneer 11. Several existing theories for the ring atmosphere are reviewed and it is concluded that difficulties remain with all of them.

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