Saturn's Global Magnetospheric Mode

Details Saturn's Global Magnetospheric Mode Saturn's Global Magnetospheric Mode

Dec 2010

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010agufmsm21b1899r&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2010, abstract #SM21B-1899

Physics

[2740] Magnetospheric Physics / Magnetospheric Configuration And Dynamics, [2788] Magnetospheric Physics / Magnetic Storms And Substorms, [6220] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Jupiter, [6275] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Saturn

Scientific paper

At Jupiter, in addition to strong clock-like modulation at the planetary spin rate, there is also a quasi-periodic 2-3 day modulation associated with plasma bursts, auroral brightening and magnetospheric reconfiguration events (although we note that a recent survey [Vogt et al., 2010 JGR] of magnetic reconnection signatures at Jupiter found that the 2-3 day period was not a persistent feature in the magnetic field). The quasi-periodic modulation has been associated with a characteristic (internally driven) global magnetospheric mass-loading and unloading rate [Kronberg et al., 2007 JGR]. In this model internal plasma loading stretches the magnetic field configuration causing the field lines to become increasingly anti-parallel. Eventually this creates an x-line which is unstable to reconnection, the magnetotail beyond the x-line tears off, and the magnetosphere returns to its unperturbed state. The process is rather analogous to the filling and unfilling of a Japanese shishi-odoshi or ‘deer scarer’ fountain. We revisit the estimates for the period at Jupiter using a monte-carlo simulation and explore whether there is equivalent behavior at Saturn and, if so, on what time scale.

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