Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Oct 2007
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007dps....39.0705r&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #39, #7.05; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 39, p.420
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
1
Scientific paper
In support of the analysis of Cassini stellar occultations of Saturn's rings, we have completed a series of local N-body simulations of both the A ring and the B ring in order to identify systematic differences in the degree of particle clumping into self-gravity wakes as a function of orbital distance from Saturn and classical optical depth (which is proportional to surface density of particles). These simulations revealed that the normal optical depth of the final configuration is not a linear function of the surface density of particles as is usually assumed. The surface density of particles can be substantially larger than one would infer from a uniform distribution of particles. Adding more particles to the simulation simply piles more particles onto the self-gravity wakes while leaving relatively clear gaps between the wakes. These simulations may explain why the Cassini UVIS instrument can detect stellar occulations through regions of the B ring that have average optical depths that are substantially larger than unity at some observation geometries. Calculated optical depths of our N-body simulations exhibit strong variations with the viewing geometry similar to the variations observed in stellar occulations. We also find that the viscosity (and hence the spreading rate) in the A ring is substantially larger than that in the B ring (at identical surface densities) because the extensive particle clumping in the B ring results in a slow taffy pull of long strings of particles rather than the vigorous stirring seen in the A ring simulations.
Colwell Joshua E.
Lewis Mark C.
Robbins Stuart J.
Stewart Glen Robert
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