Cassini RPWS dust observation near the Janus/Epimetheus orbit
- During the Ring Grazing orbits near the end of Cassini mission, the spacecraft crossed the equatorial plane near the orbit of Janus/Epimetheus (similar to 2.5 Rs). This region is populated with dust particles that can be detected by the Radio and Plasma Wave Science (RPWS) instrument via an electric field antenna signal. Analysis of the voltage waveforms recorded on the RPWS antennas provides estimations of the density and size distribution of the dust particles. Measured RPWS profiles, fitted with Lorentzian functions, are shown to be mostly consistent with the Cosmic Dust Analyzer, the dedicated dust instrument on board Cassini. The thickness of the dusty ring varies between 600 and 1,000 km. The peak location shifts north and south within 100 km of the ring plane, likely a function of the precession phase of Janus orbit.
Author details: | S. -Y. YeORCiD, William S. KurthORCiD, George B. HospodarskyORCiD, Ann M. PersoonORCiD, Don A. GurnettORCiD, Michiko MorookaORCiD, Jan-Erik WahlundORCiD, Hsiang-Wen HsuORCiD, Martin SeissORCiDGND, Ralf SramaORCiDGND |
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DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1029/2017JA025112 |
ISSN: | 2169-9380 |
ISSN: | 2169-9402 |
Title of parent work (English): | Journal of geophysical research : Space physics |
Publisher: | American Geophysical Union |
Place of publishing: | Washington |
Publication type: | Article |
Language: | English |
Date of first publication: | 2018/06/04 |
Publication year: | 2018 |
Release date: | 2021/11/24 |
Tag: | Saturn; dust; ring |
Volume: | 123 |
Issue: | 6 |
Number of pages: | 9 |
First page: | 4952 |
Last Page: | 4960 |
Funding institution: | NASANational Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) [1415150]; Jet Propulsion LaboratoryNational Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA); Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft-und RaumfahrtHelmholtz AssociationGerman Aerospace Centre (DLR) [OH 1401] |
Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Physik und Astronomie |
DDC classification: | 5 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik / 53 Physik / 530 Physik |
Peer review: | Referiert |