Observation of Saturn's Rings Fine Scale Structures in the Thermal Infrared

Details Observation of Saturn's Rings Fine Scale Structures in the Thermal Infrared Observation of Saturn's Rings Fine Scale Structures in the Thermal Infrared

Sep 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006dps....38.4208a&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #38, #42.08; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 38, p.561

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

We analyze data of Saturn's main rings that were obtained by the Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) in 2004 and 2005. Our goal is to benefit from the high spatial resolution and the various viewing geometries offered by the mid-IR interferometer (FP3 channel, 600 /cm- 1100 /cm) to study the infrared visibility of various substructures in the main rings.
Using the CIRS FP3 1x10 array of detectors allows better spatial resolution of the local temperature brightness variations and therefore the ability to sense finer structures such as plateaus in the C ring. Under favorable conditions, both brightness temperature and filling factor values of a region can be derived from a direct fit of the radiance curve. Alternatively, the normal optical depth value (from the Voyager PPS data) can be used, assuming a simple thermal model to constrain the filling factor. In particular, plateaus and ringlets in the C ring and Cassini division were resolved and a first attempt to derive their characteristic phase curve is presented. In general, a decrease of the emitted radiance with increasing phase angle is observed. Comparing phase curves against a classical many-particle-thick model may allow us to constrain the volume density, optical thickness and geometric albedo of the region considered. Our preliminary results will be presented.

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