Lamy, L. and Schippers, P. and Zarka, P. and Cecconi, B. and Arridge, Chris S. and Dougherty, M.K. and Louarn, P. and André, N. and Kurth, W.S. and Mutel, R.L. and Gurnett, D.A. and Coates, Andrew J. (2010) Properties of Saturn kilometric radiation measured within its source region. Geophysical Research Letters 37 (12), ISSN 0094-8276.
Abstract
On 17 October 2008, the Cassini spacecraft crossed the southern sources of Saturn kilometric radiation (SKR), while flying along high-latitude nightside magnetic field lines. In situ measurements allowed us to characterize for the first time the source region of an extra-terrestrial auroral radio emission. Using radio, magnetic field and particle observations, we show that SKR sources are surrounded by a hot tenuous plasma, in a region of upward field-aligned currents. Magnetic field lines supporting radio sources map a continuous, high-latitude and spiral-shaped auroral oval observed on the dawnside, consistent with enhanced auroral activity. Investigating the Cyclotron Maser Instability (CMI) as a mechanism responsible for SKR generation, we find that observed cutoff frequencies are consistent with radio waves amplified perpendicular to the magnetic field by hot (6 to 9 keV) resonant electrons, measured locally.
Metadata
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Keyword(s) / Subject(s): | auroral region, kilometric waves, Cassini spacecraft |
| School: | Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science > School of Natural Sciences |
| Depositing User: | Administrator |
| Date Deposited: | 15 Dec 2014 11:39 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Aug 2023 17:14 |
| URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/11285 |
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