Other
Scientific paper
Sep 2008
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008dps....40.4402m&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #40, #44.02; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 40, p.477
Other
1
Scientific paper
The second large satellite of Jupiter, Europa, is of great interest in that it may have a liquid ocean beneath a thin icy crust. The surface composition may indicate something of the nature of the ocean. The Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (NIMS) observations onboard the Galileo spacecraft revealed much about the surface composition of Europa from the reflectance spectra in the wavelength between 0.7 and 5.2 µm. But, the strong radiation environment near Europa caused considerable noise in the NIMS data. Experience with these data during and after the full Galileo mission has now allowed reprocessing and re-calibration of the NIMS data, including noise spike removal, so that more refined analysis can be performed. Hansen and McCord (2007) described the reprocessing methods and showed the spatial distribution of CO2 and some other non-ice compounds on Europa in the low-signal 3-5 µm spectral region. Here, we describe similar re-analysis for the 0.7-3 µm region, especially concerning the hydrated material, identified earlier as hydrated magnesium and sodium salts and/or sulfuric acid. The reprocessed data show more clearly the several H2O-hydrated spectral absorptions in the Europa-NIMS data. This improvement allows more accurate mapping of the absorptions across the surface areas observed as well as more refined interpretation of the absorptions. The hydration features appear most strongly inside the lineaments studied and in general are strongly correlated with the visually dark regions, including for at least one small circular feature. This suggests that the hydrated material is in some way related to the subsurface and possibility the ocean. New observations with modern spectrometers and other instrumentation would greatly expand the results of the Galileo exploratory study.
Hansen, G. B., and T. B. McCord (2007) Geophysical Research Letters, 35, L0 1202, doi:1210.1029/2007GL031748.
Combe J.
Hansen Gary B.
Hayne Paul
McCord Thomas B.
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