Composition and Dynamics of Plasma in Saturn's Magnetosphere
Composition and Dynamics of Plasma in Saturn's Magnetosphere
复制标题
土星磁层中等离子体的组成和动力学
作者：
D. Young;J. Berthelier;M. Blanc;J. Burch;S. Bolton;A. Coates;F. Crary;R. Goldstein;M. Grande;T. Hill;R. E. Johnson;R. Baragiola;V. Kelha;D. McComas;K. Mursula;E. Sittler;K. Svenes;K. Szegö;P. Tanskanen;M. Thomsen;S. Bakshi;B. Barraclough;Z. Bebesi;D. Delapp;M. Dunlop;J. Gosling;J. Furman;L. Gilbert;D. Glenn;C. Holmlund;J. Illiano;G. Lewis;D. Linder;S. Maurice;H. McAndrews;B. T. Narheim;E. Pallier;D. Reisenfeld;A. Rymer;H. Smith;Robert L. Tokar;J. Vilppola;C. Zinsmeyer
在卡西尼号的初始轨道上，我们观测到了一个动态磁层，主要由水基原子和分子离子的复杂混合物组成。我们已经确定了四个不同的区域，它们的特点是体等离子体性质和离子组成都不同。在大约9RS(其中RS是离土星中心的径向距离)之外，质子是主要的物种，而在里面，等离子体主要由水生离子和∼3%N+的共旋彗星状混合组成。在A环和B环上，我们发现了一个以O2+和O+为主的电离层，这表明可能存在一层类似于木卫二和木卫三大气层的O2气体。
During Cassini's initial orbit, we observed a dynamic magnetosphere composed primarily of a complex mixture of water-derived atomic and molecular ions. We have identified four distinct regions characterized by differences in both bulk plasma properties and ion composition. Protons are the dominant species outside about 9 RS (where RS is the radial distance from the center of Saturn), whereas inside, the plasma consists primarily of a corotating comet-like mix of water-derived ions with ∼3% N+. Over the A and B rings, we found an ionosphere in which O2+ and O+ are dominant, which suggests the possible existence of a layer of O2 gas similar to the atmospheres of Europa and Ganymede.