An analysis of the structure of Saturn's magnetic field using charged particle absorption signatures
- Creators
- Chenette, D. L.
- Davis, Leverett, Jr.
Abstract
A new technique is derived for determining the structure of Saturn's magnetic field. This technique uses the observed positions of charged particle absorption signatures due to the satellites and rings of Saturn to determine the parameters of an axially symmetric, spherical harmonic model of the magnetic field using the method of least squares. Absorption signatures observed along the Pioneer 11, Voyager 1, and Voyager 2 spacecraft trajectories are used to derive values for the orientation of the magnetic symmetry axis relative to Saturn's axis of rotation, the axial displacement of the center of the magnetic dipole from the center of Saturn, and the magnitude of the external field component. Comparing these results with the magnetic field model parameters deduced from analyses of magnetometer data leads us to prefer models that incorporate a northward offset of the dipole center by about 0.05 R_s.
Additional Information
© 1982 by the American Geophysical Union. Received February 22, 1982; revised April 12, 1982; accepted April 13, 1982. The Voyager cosmic ray system experiment is the result of a collaboration of groups from Caltech, Goddard Space Flight Center, the University of Arizona, and the University of New Hampshire. We are grateful to R. E. Vogt, principal investigator for this experiment, for making these Voyager data available to us. We also thank A. W. Schardt of the Goddard Space Flight Center for reducing the Voyager 2 CRS high energy proton data, R. B. McKibben and J. A. Simpson of The University of Chicago for providing the positions of the Pioneer 11 absorption signatures used in this study, and the Voyager Navigation Team of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for providing accurate positions of the satellites of Saturn. We appreciated E. C. Stone's thoughtful suggestions and comments on an early version of this paper. This work was supported by NASA under NAS7-100 and NGR 05-002- 160. DLC acknowledges additional support by the Aerospace Corporation's sponsored research program. The Editor thanks M. H. Acuna and D. Beard for their assistance in evaluating this paper.Attached Files
Published - 1982-02.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 45078
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20140421-131758533
- NASA
- NAS7-100
- NASA
- NGR 05-002-160
- Aerospace Corporation
- Created
-
2014-04-24Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
-
2021-11-10Created from EPrint's last_modified field
- Caltech groups
- Space Radiation Laboratory
- Other Numbering System Name
- Space Radiation Laboratory
- Other Numbering System Identifier
- 1982-02