Other
Scientific paper
Oct 2007
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007dps....39.3703m&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #39, #37.03; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 39, p.487
Other
Scientific paper
As reported by Baines et al. (2006, BAAS 38, 488), Saturn displays a pronounced North/South hemispherical asymmetry in 5-μm images obtained of the planet's nightside. These nightside images, uncontaminated by sunlight which otherwise adds significant reflected light to the southern summer hemisphere, shows that northern latitudes poleward of 8 degrees latitude emit about twice the 5-μm flux as their southern latitude counterparts. The 2:1 hemispherical variability likely indicates a global-scale variation in the opacity in Saturn's clouds. Here we report quantitative results for daylit images obtained in the near-infrared (1.4-2.2 μm) in regions uncontaminated by ring shadow; specifically over a 10-degree of latitude region near 41 degrees N. latitude, which we then compare to its counterpart 41 degrees S. latitude observed under similar viewing conditions. We find in our preliminary modeling that aerosols in the upper atmosphere near the 300-mbar level in the northern hemisphere have an opacity about 5% of southern aerosols, and are significantly smaller in size (0.8 μm in the north vs 1.0 μm in the south). This large hemispherical difference in aerosol opacity/abundance may be a manifestation of seasonal changes on Saturn, with distinct thinning of upper-level clouds in the northern winter hemisphere and/or thickening of these clouds in the southern summer hemisphere, perhaps due to enhanced convection and/or photochemistry due to the greater solar flux and solar energy deposition at depth in summertime. Such possible seasonal variability in Saturn's aerosol structure will be monitored over the next few years as Saturn encounters equinox conditions in 2010.
Atreya Sushil K.
Baines Kevin Hays
Brown Harvey R.
Buratti Bonnie Jean
Cassini/VIMS Science Team
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