Reducing the non-axisymmetry of a planetary dynamo and an application to saturn |
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| Authors: | D J Stevenson |
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| Institution: | Division of Geological and Planetary Science , California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, California, 91125, U.S.A. |
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| Abstract: | Abstract If a conducting fluid shell is undergoing spin-axisymmetric differential rotation and overlies the dynamo generating region of a planet then it is capable of greatly reducing the non-spin-axisymmetric components of the generated field, provided the appropriate magnetic Reynolds number is large. The model, closely related to the electromagnetic skin effect, is quantified and applied to Saturn. The observed small dipole tilt (～ 1°) of Saturn's magnetic field can be explained because of the presence of a stably stratified conducting layer overlying the dynamo region. This layer is a predicted consequence of the thermal evolution, arises because of the limited solubility of helium in metallic hydrogen (Stevenson, 1980), and appears to be required by the Voyager infrared observations indicating depletion of helium from Saturn's atmosphere. The much larger dipole tilt angles of Jupiter and the Earth indicate the absence of any such stable, differentially rotating layer with a large magnetic Reynolds number. |
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| Keywords: | Wave-wave interactions multiple time scales dissipation topography baroclinic instability |
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