Rate-dependent strength of porous ice–silica mixtures and its implications for the shape of small to middle-sized icy satellites     

Minami Yasui  Masahiko Arakawa 《Icarus》2010,210(2):956-967

Porosity is one of the most important physical properties in the rheology of small icy satellites composed of ice–silicate mixtures. Deformation experiments involving ice and 1 μm silica bead mixtures were conducted to clarify the effect of porosity on the flow law of ice–silica mixtures. Mixtures with silica mass contents of 0, 30, and 50 wt.% were used for the experiments, and the porosity was changed from 0% to 25% in each mixture. The temperature ranged from −10 to −20 °C, and the strain rate was changed from 1.2 × 10⁻⁶ to 4.2 × 10⁻⁴ s⁻¹. As a result, it was found that the ice–silica mixtures deformed plastically, and that the relationship between the maximum stress, σ_max, on the stress–strain curve and the applied strain rate, , could be described by the following flow law: . The mixture became softer as the porosity or silica mass content increased, and the stress exponent n and activation energy Q were independent of porosity, depending only on the silica mass content. Furthermore, the parameter A₀ could be written as A₀ = B(1 − ?)^−α, where ? is the porosity. The constants B and α also depended only on the silica mass content, and they increased with the increase in this content. The Maxwell relaxation time was calculated in order to estimate the conditions for topographic relaxation of icy satellites, and it was found that topographic relaxation occurred at temperatures higher than 160 K in the case of icy satellites with mean radii of 200 km.  相似文献   

A ballistics analysis of the Deep Impact ejecta plume: Determining Comet Tempel 1's gravity, mass, and density     

James E. Richardson  H. Jay Melosh  Brian Carcich 《Icarus》2007,190(2):357-390

In July of 2005, the Deep Impact mission collided a 366 kg impactor with the nucleus of Comet 9P/Tempel 1, at a closing speed of 10.2 km s⁻¹. In this work, we develop a first-order, three-dimensional, forward model of the ejecta plume behavior resulting from this cratering event, and then adjust the model parameters to match the flyby-spacecraft observations of the actual ejecta plume, image by image. This modeling exercise indicates Deep Impact to have been a reasonably “well-behaved” oblique impact, in which the impactor-spacecraft apparently struck a small, westward-facing slope of roughly 1/3-1/2 the size of the final crater produced (determined from initial ejecta plume geometry), and possessing an effective strength of not more than . The resulting ejecta plume followed well-established scaling relationships for cratering in a medium-to-high porosity target, consistent with a transient crater of not more than 85-140 m diameter, formed in not more than 250-550 s, for the case of (gravity-dominated cratering); and not less than 22-26 m diameter, formed in not less than 1-3 s, for the case of (strength-dominated cratering). At , an upper limit to the total ejected mass of 1.8×¹⁰⁷ kg (1.5-2.2×¹⁰⁷ kg) is consistent with measurements made via long-range remote sensing, after taking into account that 90% of this mass would have stayed close to the surface and then landed within 45 min of the impact. However, at , a lower limit to the total ejected mass of 2.3×¹⁰⁵ kg (1.5-2.9×¹⁰⁵ kg) is also consistent with these measurements. The expansion rate of the ejecta plume imaged during the look-back phase of observations leads to an estimate of the comet's mean surface gravity of (0.17-0.90 mm s⁻²), which corresponds to a comet mass of mt=4.5×¹⁰¹³ kg (2.3-12.0×¹⁰¹³ kg) and a bulk density of (200-1000 kg m⁻³), where the large high-end error is due to uncertainties in the magnitude of coma gas pressure effects on the ejecta particles in flight.  相似文献   

Parametric analysis of modeled ion escape from Mars     

Curtis V. Manning  Yingjuan Ma  Christopher P. McKay 《Icarus》2011,212(1):131-137

We develop a parametric fit to the results of a detailed magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) study of the response of ion escape rates (O⁺, and ) to strongly varied solar forcing factors, as a way to efficiently extend the MHD results to different conditions. We then use this to develop a second, evolutionary model of solar forced ion escape. We treat the escape fluxes of ion species at Mars as proportional to the product of power laws of four factors - that of the EUV flux R_euv, the solar wind particle density R_ρ, its velocity (squared) R_v², and the interplanetary magnetic field pressure R_B², where forcing factors are expressed in units of the current epoch-averaged values. Our parametric model is: , where ?(i) is the escape flux of ion i. We base our study on the results of just six provided MHD model runs employing large forcing factor variations, and thus construct a successful, first-order parametric model of the MHD program. We perform a five-dimensional least squares fit of this power law model to the MHD results to derive the flux normalizations and the indices of the solar forcing factors. For O⁺, we obtain the values, 1.73 × 10²⁴ s⁻¹, 0.782, 0.251, 0.382, and 0.214, for ?₀, α, β, γ, and δ, respectively. For , the corresponding values are 1.68 × 10²⁴ s⁻¹, −0.393, 0.798, 0.967, and 0.533. For , they are 8.66 × 10²² s⁻¹, −0.427, 1.083, 1.214, and 0.690. The fit reproduces the MHD results to an average error of about 5%, suggesting that the power laws are broadly representative of the MHD model results. Our analysis of the MHD model shows that by itself an increase in R_EUV enhances O⁺ loss, but suppresses the escape of and , whereas increases in solar wind (i.e., in , and R_B², with R_euv constant) favors the escape of heavier ions more than light ions. The ratios of escaping ions detectable at Mars today can be predicted by this parametric fit as a function of the solar forcing factors. We also use the parametric model to compute escape rates over martian history. This second parametric model expresses ion escape functions of one variable (per ion), ?(i) = ?₀(i)(t/t₀)^−ξ(i). The ξ(i) are linear combinations of the epoch-averaged ion escape sensitivities, which are seen to increase with ion mass. We integrate the and oxygen ion escape rates over time, and find that in the last 3.85 Gyr, Mars would have lost about mbars of , and of water (from O⁺ and ) from ion escape.  相似文献   

A global solution for the Mars static and seasonal gravity, Mars orientation, Phobos and Deimos masses, and Mars ephemeris   总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2  

Alex S. Konopliv  Charles F. Yoder  E. Myles Standish  Dah-Ning Yuan  William L. Sjogren 《Icarus》2006,182(1):23-50

With the collection of six years of MGS tracking data and three years of Mars Odyssey tracking data, there has been a continual improvement in the JPL Mars gravity field determination. This includes the measurement of the seasonal changes in the gravity coefficients (e.g., , , , , , ) caused by the mass exchange between the polar ice caps and atmosphere. This paper describes the latest gravity field MGS95J to degree and order 95. The improvement comes from additional tracking data and the adoption of a more complete Mars orientation model with nutation, instead of the IAU 2000 model. Free wobble of the Mars' spin axis, i.e. polar motion, has been constrained to be less than 10 mas by looking at the temporal history of and . A strong annual signature is observed in , and this is a mixture of polar motion and ice mass redistribution. The Love number solution with a subset of Odyssey tracking data is consistent with the previous liquid outer core determination from MGS tracking data [Yoder et al., 2003. Science 300, 299-303], giving a combined solution of k₂=0.152±0.009 using MGS and Odyssey tracking data. The solutions for the masses of the Mars' moons show consistency between MGS, Odyssey, and Viking data sets; Phobos GM=(7.16±0.005)×¹⁰⁻⁴ km³/s² and Deimos GM=(0.98±0.07)×¹⁰⁻⁴ km³/s². Average MGS orbit errors, determined from differences in the overlaps of orbit solutions, have been reduced to 10-cm in the radial direction and 1.5 m along the spacecraft velocity and normal to the orbit plane. Hence, the ranging to the MGS and Odyssey spacecraft has resulted in position measurements of the Mars system center-of-mass relative to the Earth to an accuracy of one meter, greatly reducing the Mars ephemeris errors by several orders of magnitude, and providing mass estimates for Asteroids 1 Ceres, 2 Pallas, 3 Juno, 4 Vesta, and 324 Bamberga.  相似文献   

On the Vertical Thermal Structure of Pluto's Atmosphere     

Darrell F. Strobel  Xun Zhu  Michael E. Summers  Michael H. Stevens 《Icarus》1996,120(2):266-289

A radiative–conductive model for the vertical thermal structure of Pluto's atmosphere is developed with a non-LTE treatment of solar heating in the CH₄3.3 μm and 2.3 μm bands, non-LTE radiative exchange and cooling in the CH₄7.6 μm band, and LTE cooling by CO rotational line emission. The model includes the effects of opacity and vibrational energy transfer in the CH₄molecule. Partial thermalization of absorbed solar radiation in the CH₄3.3 and 2.3 μm bands by rapid vibrational energy transfer from the stretch modes to the bending modes generates high altitude heating at sub-microbar pressures. Heating in the 2.3 μm bands exceeds heating in 3.3 μm bands by approximately a factor of 6 and occurs predominantly at microbar pressures to generate steep temperature gradients ∼10–20 K km⁻¹forp> 2 μbar when the surface or tropopause pressure is ∼3 μbar and the CH₄mixing ratio is a constant 3%. This calculated structure may account for the “knee” in the stellar occultation lightcurve. The vertical temperature structure in the first 100 km above the surface is similar for atmospheres with Ar, CO, and N₂individually as the major constituent. If a steep temperature gradient ∼20 K km⁻¹is required near the surface or above the tropopause, then the preferred major constituent is Ar with 3% CH₄mixing ratio to attain a calculated ratio ofT/(= 3.5 K amu⁻¹) in agreement with inferred values from stellar occultation data. However, pure Ar and N₂ices at the same temperature yield an Ar vapor pressure of only ∼0.04 times the N₂vapor pressure. Alternative scenarios are discussed that may yield acceptable fits with N₂as the dominant constituent. One possibility is a 3 μbar N₂atmosphere with 0.3% CH₄that has 106 K isothermal region (T/= 3.8 K amu⁻¹) and ∼8 K km⁻¹surface/tropopause temperature gradient. Another possibility would be a higher surface pressure ∼10 μbar with a scattering haze forp> 2 μbar. Our model with appropriate adjustments in the CH₄density profile to Triton's inferred profile yields a temperature profile consistent with the UVS solar occultation data (Krasnopolsky, V. A., B. R. Sandel, and F. Herbert 1992.J. Geophys. Res.98, 3065–3078.) and ground-based stellar occultation data (Elliot, J. L., E. W. Dunham, and C. B. Olkin 1993.Bull. Am. Astron. Soc.25, 1106.).  相似文献   

Heavy ion escape from Mars, influence from solar wind conditions and crustal magnetic fields     

Hans Nilsson  Niklas J.T. Edberg  Stas Barabash  Yoshifumi Futaana  Andrei Fedorov 《Icarus》2011,215(2):475-484

We have used more than 4 years of Mars Express ion data to estimate the escape of heavy ions ( and ) from Mars. To take the limited field of view of the instrument into account, the data has been binned into spatial bins and angular bins to create average distribution functions for different positions in the near Mars space. The net escape flux for the studied low solar activity period, between May 2007 and May 2011, is 2.0 ± 0.2 × 10²⁴ s⁻¹. The escape has been calculated independently for four different quadrants in the Y_MSO − Z_MSO plane, south, dusk, north and dawn. Escape is highest from the northern and dusk quadrants, 0.6 ± 0.1 × 10²⁴ s⁻¹, and smallest from the south and dawn quadrants, 0.4 ± 0.1 × 10²⁴ s⁻¹. The flux ratio of molecular ( and ) to O⁺ ions is 0.9 ± 0.1, averaged over all quadrants. The flux difference between the north and south quadrants is statistically significant, and is presumed to be due to the presence of significant crustal magnetic fields in the southern hemisphere, reducing the outflow. The difference between the dawn and dusk quadrants is likely due to the magnetic tension associated with the nominal Parker angle spiral, which should lead to higher average magnetic tension on the dusk side. The escape increases during periods of high solar wind flux and during times when co-rotating interaction regions (CIR) affect Mars. In the latter case the increase is a factor 2.4-2.9 as compared to average conditions.  相似文献   

Relaxation-limited evaporation of globular clusters     

Maurice H.P.M. van Putten 《New Astronomy》2012,17(4):411-423

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Meridional variations of temperature, C₂H₂ and C₂H₆ abundances in Saturn's stratosphere at southern summer solstice     

Thomas K. Greathouse  John H. Lacy  Bruno Bézard  Caitlin A. Griffith 《Icarus》2005,177(1):18-31

Measurements of the vertical and latitudinal variations of temperature and C₂H₂ and C₂H₆ abundances in the stratosphere of Saturn can be used as stringent constraints on seasonal climate models, photochemical models, and dynamics. The summertime photochemical loss timescale for C₂H₆ in Saturn's middle and lower stratosphere (∼40-10,000 years, depending on altitude and latitude) is much greater than the atmospheric transport timescale; ethane observations may therefore be used to trace stratospheric dynamics. The shorter chemical lifetime for C₂H₂ (∼1-7 years depending on altitude and latitude) makes the acetylene abundance less sensitive to transport effects and more sensitive to insolation and seasonal effects. To obtain information on the temperature and hydrocarbon abundance distributions in Saturn's stratosphere, high-resolution spectral observations were obtained on September 13-14, 2002 UT at NASA's IRTF using the mid-infrared TEXES grating spectrograph. At the time of the observations, Saturn was at a LS≈270°, corresponding to Saturn's southern summer solstice. The observed spectra exhibit a strong increase in the strength of methane emission at 1230 cm⁻¹ with increasing southern latitude. Line-by-line radiative transfer calculations indicate that a temperature increase in the stratosphere of ≈10 K from the equator to the south pole between 10 and 0.01 mbar is implied. Similar observations of acetylene and ethane were also recorded. We find the 1.16 mbar mixing ratio of C₂H₂ at −1° and −83° planetocentric latitude to be and , respectively. The C₂H₂ mixing ratio at 0.12 mbar is found to be at −1° planetocentric latitude and at −83° planetocentric latitude. The 2.3 mbar mixing ratio of C₂H₆ inferred from the data is and at −1° and −83° planetocentric latitude, respectively. Further observations, creating a time baseline, will be required to completely resolve the question of how much the latitudinal variations of C₂H₂ and C₂H₆ are affected by seasonal forcing and/or stratospheric circulation.  相似文献   

When did cosmic acceleration start? How fast was the transition?     

mille E.O. Ishida  Ribamar R.R. Reis  Alan V. Toribio  Ioav Waga 《Astroparticle Physics》2008,28(6):547-552

Cosmic acceleration is investigated through a kink-like expression for the deceleration parameter (q). The new parametrization depends on the initial (q_i) and final (q_f) values of q, on the redshift of the transition from deceleration to acceleration (z_t) and the width of such transition (τ). We show that although supernovae (SN) observations (Gold182 and SNLS data samples) indicate, at high confidence, that a transition occurred in the past (z_t > 0) they do not, by themselves, impose strong constraints on the maximum value of z_t. However, when we combine SN with the measurements of the ratio between the comoving distance to the last scattering surface and the SDSS + 2dfGRS BAO distance scale (S_k/D_v) we obtain, at 95.4% confidence level, and for (S_k/D_v+Gold182), and and for (S_k/D_v+SNLS), assuming q_i = 0.5 and q_f = −1. We also analyze the general case, q_f  (−∞, 0) finding the constraints that the combined tests (S_k/D_v+SNLS) impose on the present value of the deceleration parameter (q₀).  相似文献   

New Horizons Alice ultraviolet observations of a stellar occultation by Jupiter’s atmosphere     

Thomas K. Greathouse  G.R. Gladstone  S.A. Stern  R.J. Vervack Jr.  M.H. Versteeg  L.A. Young  H. Throop 《Icarus》2010,208(1):293-305

The Alice ultraviolet spectrograph onboard the New Horizons spacecraft observed two occultations of the bright star χ Ophiucus by Jupiter’s atmosphere on February 22 and 23, 2007 during the approach phase of the Jupiter flyby. The ingress occultation probed the atmosphere at 32°N latitude near the dawn terminator, while egress probed 18°N latitude near the dusk terminator. A detailed analysis of both the ingress and egress occultations, including the effects of molecular hydrogen, methane, acetylene, ethylene, and ethane absorptions in the far ultraviolet (FUV), constrains the eddy diffusion coefficient at the homopause level to be  cm² s⁻¹, consistent with Voyager measurements and other analyses (Festou, M.C., Atreya, S.K., Donahue, T.M., Sandel, B.R., Shemansky, D.E., Broadfoot, A.L. [1981]. J. Geophys. Res. 86, 5717-5725; Vervack Jr., R.J., Sandel, B.R., Gladstone, G.R., McConnell, J.C., Parkinson, C.D. [1995]. Icarus 114, 163-173; Yelle, R.V., Young, L.A., Vervack Jr., R.J., Young, R., Pfister, L., Sandel, B.R. [1996]. J. Geophys. Res. 101 (E1), 2149-2162). However, the actual derived pressure level of the methane homopause for both occultations differs from that derived by [Festou et al., 1981] and [Yelle et al., 1996] from the Voyager ultraviolet occultations, suggesting possible changes in the strength of atmospheric mixing with time. We find that at 32°N latitude, the methane concentration is  cm⁻³ at 70,397 km, the methane concentration is  cm⁻³ at 70,383 km, the acetylene concentration is  cm⁻³ at 70,364 km, and the ethane concentration is  cm⁻³ at 70,360 km. At 18°N latitude, the methane concentration is  cm⁻³ at 71,345 km, the methane concentration is  cm⁻³ at 71,332 km, the acetylene concentration is cm⁻³ at 71,318 km, and the ethane concentration is  cm⁻³ at 71,315 km. We also find that the H₂ occultation light curve is best reproduced if the atmosphere remains cold in the microbar region such that the base of the thermosphere is located at a lower pressure level than that determined by in situ instruments aboard the Galileo probe (Seiff, A., Kirk, D.B., Knight, T.C.D., Young, R.E., Mihalov, J.D., Young, L.A., Milos, F.S., Schubert, G., Blanchard, R.C., Atkinson, D. [1998]. J. Geophys. Res. 103 (E10), 22857-22889) - the Sieff et al. temperature profile leads to too much absorption from H₂ at high altitudes. However, this result is highly model dependent and non-unique. The observations and analysis help constrain photochemical models of Jupiter’s atmosphere.  相似文献   

Thermal infrared and optical observations of four near-Earth asteroids     

Stephen D. Wolters  Simon F. Green 《Icarus》2008,193(2):535-552

We present thermal infrared photometry and spectrophotometry of four near-Earth asteroids (NEAs), namely (433) Eros, (66063) 1998 RO₁, (137032) 1998 UO₁, and (138258) 2000 GD₂, using the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) in 2002. For two objects, i.e. (433) Eros and (137032) 1998 UO₁, quasi-simultaneous optical observations were also obtained, using the Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope (JKT). For (127032) 1998 UO₁, we obtain a rotation period P=3.0±0.1 h and an absolute visual magnitude HV=16.7±0.4. The Standard Thermal Model (STM), Fast Rotating Model (FRM) and near-Earth asteroid Thermal Model (NEATM) have been fitted to the IR fluxes to determine effective diameters Deff, geometric albedos pv, and beaming parameters η. The derived values are (433) Eros: Deff=23.3±3.5 km (at lightcurve maximum), pv=0.24±0.07, η=0.95±0.19; (66063) 1998 RO₁: , ; (137032) 1998 UO₁: Deff<1.13 km, pv>0.29; (138258) 2000 GD₂: Deff=0.27±0.04 km, , η=0.74±0.15. (66063) 1998 RO₁ is a binary asteroid from lightcurve characteristics [Pravec, P., and 56 colleagues, 2006. Icarus 181, 63-93] and we estimate the effective diameter of the primary (Dp) and secondary (Ds) components: and . The diameter and albedo of (138258) 2000 GD₂ are consistent with the trend of decreasing diameter for S- and Q-type asteroids found by Delbó et al. [Delbó, M., Harris, A.W., Binzel, R.P., Pravec, P., Davies, J.K., 2003. Icarus 166, 116-130]. A possible trend of increasing beaming parameter with diameter for small (less than about 3 km) S- and Q-type asteroids is found.  相似文献   

Orbital effects of non-isotropic mass depletion of the atmospheres of evaporating hot Jupiters in extrasolar systems     

Lorenzo Iorio 《New Astronomy》2012,17(3):356-361

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Detection of C₂HD and the D/H ratio on Titan     

Athena Coustenis  Donald E. Jennings  Yves Bénilan  Sandrine Vinatier  Gordon L. Bjoraker  Ronald C. Carlson 《Icarus》2008,197(2):539-548

We report here the first detection of mono-deuterated acetylene (acetylene-d1, C₂HD) in Titan's atmosphere from the presence of two of its emission bands at 678 and 519 cm⁻¹ as observed in CIRS spectral averages of nadir and limb observations taken between July 2004 and mid-2007. By using new laboratory spectra for this molecule, we were able to derive its abundance at different locations over Titan's disk. We find the C₂HD value () to be roughly constant with latitude from the South to about 45° N and then to increase slightly in the North, as is the case for C₂H₂. Fitting the 678 cm⁻¹ν₅ band simultaneously with the nearby C₂H₂ 729 cm⁻¹ν₅ band, allows us to infer a D/H ratio in acetylene on Titan with an average of the modal values of 2.09±0.45×¹⁰⁻⁴ from the nadir observations, the uncertainties being mainly due to the vertical profile used for the fit of the acetylene band. Although still subject to significant uncertainty, this D/H ratio appears to be significantly larger than the one derived in methane from the CH₃D band (upper limit of 1.5×¹⁰⁻⁴; Bézard, B., Nixon, C.A., Kleiner, I., Jennings, D.E., 2007. Icarus, 191, 397-400; Coustenis, A., Achterberg, R., Conrath, B., Jennings, D., Marten, A., Gautier, D., Bjoraker, G., Nixon, C., Romani, P., Carlson, R., Flasar, M., Samuelson, R.E., Teanby, N., Irwin, P., Bézard, B., Orton, G., Kunde, V., Abbas, M., Courtin, R., Fouchet, Th., Hubert, A., Lellouch, E., Mondellini, J., Taylor, F.W., Vinatier, S., 2007. Icarus 189, 35-62). From the analysis of limb data we infer D/H values of (at 54° S), (at 15° S), (at 54° N) and (at 80° N), which average to a mean value of 1.63±0.27×¹⁰⁻⁴.  相似文献   

Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite observations of Comet 9P/Tempel 1 and Deep Impact     

Frank Bensch  Gary J. Melnick  Martin Harwit  Ronald L. Snell  Volker Tolls 《Icarus》2006,184(2):602-610

On 4 July 2005 at 5:52 UT the Deep Impact mission successfully completed its goal to hit the nucleus of 9P/Tempel 1 with an impactor, forming a crater on the nucleus and ejecting material into the coma of the comet. NASA's Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite (SWAS) observed the ₁₁₀-₁₀₁ ortho-water ground-state rotational transition in Comet 9P/Tempel 1 before, during, and after the impact. No excess emission from the impact was detected by SWAS and we derive an upper limit of 1.8×¹⁰⁷ kg on the water ice evaporated by the impact. However, the water production rate of the comet showed large natural variations of more than a factor of three during the weeks before and after the impact. Episodes of increased activity with alternated with periods with low outgassing (). We estimate that 9P/Tempel 1 vaporized a total of N∼4.5×¹⁰³⁴ water molecules (∼1.3×¹⁰⁹ kg) during June-September 2005. Our observations indicate that only a small fraction of the nucleus of Tempel 1 appears to be covered with active areas. Water vapor is expected to emanate predominantly from topographic features periodically facing the Sun as the comet rotates. We calculate that appreciable asymmetries of these features could lead to a spin-down or spin-up of the nucleus at observable rates.  相似文献   

Jupiter's hydrocarbon polar brightening: Discovery of 3-micron line emission from south polar CH₄, C₂H₂, and C₂H₆     

Sang J. Kim  T.R. Geballe  J.H. Kim 《Icarus》2009,202(1):354-357

Jupiter exhibits bright H⁺₃ auroral arcs at 3-4 microns that cool the hot (>1000 K) ionosphere above the ∼¹⁰−7 bar level through the infrared bands of this trace constituent. Below the ¹⁰−7 bar level significant cooling proceeds through infrared active bands of CH₄, C₂H₂, and C₂H₆. We report the discovery of 3-micron line emission from these hydrocarbon species in spectra of the jovian south polar region obtained on April 18 and 20, 2006 (UT) with CGS4 on the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope. Estimated cooling rates through these molecules are 7.5×¹⁰−3, 1.4×¹⁰−3, and , respectively, for a total nearly half that of H⁺₃. We derive a temperature of 450 ± 50 K in the ¹⁰−7-¹⁰−5 bar region from the C₂H₂ lines.  相似文献   

The E ring in the vicinity of Enceladus: I. Spatial distribution and properties of the ring particles     

S. Kempf  U. Beckmann  F. Postberg  T. Economou  F. Spahn 《Icarus》2008,193(2):420-437

Saturn's diffuse E ring is the largest ring of the Solar System and extends from about (Saturn radius RS=60,330 km) to at least encompassing the icy moons Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, and Rhea. After Cassini's insertion into her saturnian orbit in July 2004, the spacecraft performed a number of equatorial as well as steep traversals through the E ring inside the orbit of the icy moon Dione. Here, we report about dust impact data we obtained during 2 shallow and 6 steep crossings of the orbit of the dominant ring source—the ice moon Enceladus. Based on impact data of grains exceeding 0.9 μm we conclude that Enceladus feeds a torus populated by grains of at least this size along its orbit. The vertical ring structure at agrees well with a Gaussian with a full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) of ∼4200 km. We show that the FWHM at is due to three-body interactions of dust grains ejected by Enceladus' recently discovered ice volcanoes with the moon during their first orbit. We find that particles with initial speeds between 225 and 235 m s⁻¹ relative to the moon's surface dominate the vertical distribution of dust. Particles with initial velocities exceeding the moon's escape speed of 207 m s⁻¹ but slower than 225 m s⁻¹ re-collide with Enceladus and do not contribute to the ring particle population. We find the peak number density to range between 16×¹⁰⁻² m⁻³ and 21×¹⁰⁻² m⁻³ for grains larger 0.9 μm, and 2.1×¹⁰⁻² m⁻³ and 7.6×¹⁰⁻² m⁻³ for grains larger than 1.6 μm. Our data imply that the densest point is displaced outwards by at least with respect of the Enceladus orbit. This finding provides direct evidence for plume particles dragged outwards by the ambient plasma. The differential size distribution for grains >0.9 μm is described best by a power law with slopes between 4 and 5. We also obtained dust data during ring plane crossings in the vicinity of the orbits of Mimas and Tethys. The vertical distribution of grains >0.8 μm at Mimas orbit is also well described by Gaussian with a FWHM of ∼5400 km and displaced southwards by ∼1200 km with respect to the geometrical equator. The vertical distribution of ring particles in the vicinity of Tethys, however, does not match a Gaussian. We use the FWHM values obtained from the vertical crossings to establish a 2-dimensional model for the ring particle distribution which matches our observations during vertical and equatorial traversals through the E ring.  相似文献   

The first detection of propane on Saturn     

Thomas K. Greathouse  John H. Lacy  Bruno Bézard  Matthew J. Richter  Claudia Knez 《Icarus》2006,181(1):266-271

We report the first detection of propane, C₃H₈, in Saturn's stratosphere. Observations taken on September 8, 2002 UT at NASA's IRTF using TEXES, show multiple emission lines due to the 748 cm⁻¹ν₂₁ band of C₃H₈. Using a line-by-line radiative transfer code, we are able to fit the data by scaling the propane vertical mixing ratio profile from the photochemical model of Moses et al. [2000. Icarus 143, 244-298]. Multiplicative factors of 0.7 and 0.65 are required to fit the −20° and −80° planetocentric latitude spectra. The resultant profiles are characterized by a 5 mbar mixing ratio of 2.7±0.8×¹⁰⁻⁸ at −20° and at −80° latitude. These results suggest that the time scale for meridional circulation lies between the net photochemical lifetimes of C₂H₂ and C₃H₈, ≈30-600 years.  相似文献   

Optical and thermal infrared observations of six near-Earth asteroids in 2002     

Stephen D. Wolters  Simon F. Green  John K. Davies 《Icarus》2005,175(1):92-110

We present thermal infrared photometry and spectrophotometry of six Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) using the 3.8 m United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) together with quasi-simultaneous optical observations of five NEAs taken at the 1.0 m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope (JKT). For Asteroid (6455) 1992 HE we derive a rotational period P=2.736±0.002 h, and an absolute visual magnitude H=14.32±0.24. For Asteroid 2002 HK₁₂ we derive . The Standard Thermal Model (STM), the Fast Rotating Model (FRM) and the Near-Earth Asteroid Thermal Model (NEATM) have been fitted to the measured fluxes to derive albedos and effective diameters. The derived geometric albedos and effective diameters are (6455) 1992 HE: pv=0.26±0.08, Deff=3.55±0.5 km; 1999 HF₁: pv=0.18±0.07, ; 2000 ED₁₀₄: pv=0.18±0.05, Deff=1.21±0.2 km; 2002 HK₁₂: , Deff=0.62±0.2 km; 2002 NX₁₈: pv=0.031±0.009, Deff=2.24±0.3 km; 2002 QE₁₅: , Deff=1.94±0.4 km. The limitations of using the NEATM to observe NEAs at high phase angles are discussed.  相似文献   

Research on the Fitting Algorithms of Almanac Parameters for Navigation Satellites     

Liu-cheng Chen  Xiao-gong Hu  Chun-hao Han  Jin-ping Chen 《Chinese Astronomy and Astrophysics》2009

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The effect of Nix and Hydra on the putative Pluto–Charon dust cloud     

Andrew Poppe  Mihály Horányi 《Planetary and Space Science》2011,59(13):1647-1653

Impact-generated dust clouds around airless bodies have been observed or suggested to be present throughout the solar system, including around the Martian, Galilean and Saturnian satellites. Simulations have assessed Pluto and Charon as sources of a possible dust cloud or torus and found that such a cloud would be dominated by Charon-produced ejecta and would have an optical depth of τ≈10⁻¹¹. These simulations were conducted before the discovery of two additional, small satellites of Pluto, Nix and Hydra. These small moons may yield impact-generated dust in excess of their larger counterparts due to their lower escape velocities, despite their smaller cross sections. In this paper, we extend a previous model of the Pluto–Charon dust cloud to include Nix and Hydra, both as sinks for Pluto- and Charon-generated dust and as sources of impact-generated dust. We find that Nix- and Hydra-generated dust grains outlive Pluto and Charon dust grains significantly and are the dominant contributors of dust in the Pluto–Charon system. Furthermore, we estimate the net geometric optical depth of grains between 0.1 and to be on the order of 10⁻⁷.  相似文献