Simulation of Io's Auroral Emission: Constraints on the Atmosphere in Eclipse

Details Simulation of Io's Auroral Emission: Constraints on the Atmosphere in Eclipse Simulation of Io's Auroral Emission: Constraints on the Atmosphere in Eclipse

Dec 2010

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010agufmsm11c1777r&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2010, abstract #SM11C-1777

Physics

[2732] Magnetospheric Physics / Magnetosphere Interactions With Satellites And Rings, [2753] Magnetospheric Physics / Numerical Modeling, [6218] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Jovian Satellites, [6219] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Io

Scientific paper

We study the intensity and morphology of Io's aurora by comparing simulation results of a three-dimensional two-fluid plasma model to observations from the high-resolution Long-Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) onboard the New Horizons spacecraft and by the Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys (HST/ACS). In 2007, Io's auroral emission in eclipse has been observed simultaneously by LORRI and ACS. The observations revealed detailed features of the aurora, such as the glowing Tvashtar plume close to the North pole. The auroral radiation is generated in Io's atmosphere by collisions between impinging magnetospheric electrons and neutral gas particles, such as SO2, O, S and Na. We calculate the interaction of the magnetospheric plasma with Io and simulate the auroral emission self-consistently. By comparing morphology and intensity of the modeled and the observed aurora we are able to derive a global map of Io's atmosphere in eclipse including mixing ratios for the minor components O, S and Na. We found that the column density in eclipse is in the order of 10% of the dayside column density. Furthermore, the auroral emission from the Tvashtar volcano enables us to constrain the gas content of some species in the plume for the first time.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

Simulation of Io's Auroral Emission: Constraints on the Atmosphere in Eclipse does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Simulation of Io's Auroral Emission: Constraints on the Atmosphere in Eclipse, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Simulation of Io's Auroral Emission: Constraints on the Atmosphere in Eclipse will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1466773