Rotationally Resolved Studies of the Mid-Ultraviolet Spectrum of Triton. II. HST Surface and Atmospheric Results

Details Rotationally Resolved Studies of the Mid-Ultraviolet Spectrum of Triton. II. HST Surface and Atmospheric Results Rotationally Resolved Studies of the Mid-Ultraviolet Spectrum of Triton. II. HST Surface and Atmospheric Results

Jun 1995

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1995aj....109.2855s&link_type=abstract

Astronomical Journal v.109, p.2855

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

8

Planets And Satellites: Individual: Triton

Scientific paper

Using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) we have obtained useful spectra of Triton at a resolution of 2 Å from 1900-3278 Å, at five rotational phases in 1992 and 1993. We present these data and analyze them to evaluate the rotational variability of Triton's mid-ultraviolet reflectance spectrum, albedo, and color slope. The main characteristics of Triton's UV reflectance spectrum include: (i) the detection of a rotationally independent cessation in Triton's well-known, red albedo slope near 2750 Å; (ii) the apparent presence of either a blue albedo upturn or a broad, solid-state absorption feature with ≍6% depth at this transition wavelength; (iii) the detection of one or additional, broad, presumably solid-state absorption features between 2000 and 2100 Å which may be related to photochemical byproducts of atmospheric chemistry lying on Triton's surface; and (iv) no evidence for atmospheric emissions at this spectral resolution. Regarding the atmosphere, we have analyzed the lack of spectral features due to OR, NO, and CO molecules in the HST spectra, in order to provide new constraints on the bulk mixing ratios of these species in Triton's atmosphere. The derived mixing ratio upper limits are MOH≤3 × 10-6, MNO≤8 × 10-5, and MCO≤1.5 × 10-2. These constraints constitute the first-ever data on OR and NO abundance in Triton's atmosphere, and a confirmation that the CO abundance is lower than the initial Voyager-UVS upper limit. Returning to Triton's surface, we have found that the main characteristics of Triton's UV rotational light curve derived from these five observations spread in rotational phase include: (i) a monotonically increasing light curve amplitude down to wavelengths as short as 2400 Å; (ii) strong structural similarities in the UV and visible light curves down to 2400 Å; (iii) a sharply reduced light curve amplitude below 2250 Å; and (iv) no indication that the 2750 Å surface absorption feature depth is correlated with rotational phase. These results are interpreted in the text.

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