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Published August 1974 | public
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Planetary Magnetism

Stevenson, David ORCID icon
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Abstract

The origin and maintenance of planetary magnetic fields are discussed. The discussion is not limited to dynamo theories although these are almost universally favored. Thermoelectric currents are found to be a possible alternative for Jupiter. Two energy sources for dynamos are considered: convection and precessionally induced fluid flow. The earth is the most favorable planet for a precessionally driven dynamo, although Neptune is a possibility. Jupiter is likely to have a convectionally driven dynamo, as may Saturn, but the relevant properties of Saturn are not yet well known. Conclusions for each planet are given.

Additional Information

© 1974 by Academic Press, Inc. Received February 22, 1974; revised April 4, 1974. I wish to thank Dr. N. W. Ashcroft for suggesting the precession model for Jupiter, Dr. C. Sagan for his helpful comments and critical reading of the first draft; also Dr. E. E. Salpeter, Dr. S. Soter and a referee for some useful comments. This work was supported in part by the National Science Foundation, Grant GP-36425X and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Grant NGR-33-010-188.

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