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Register a new userThe crucial role of HST during the NASA Juno mission: a Juno initiative
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In 2016, the NASA Juno spacecraft will initiate its one-year mission around Jupiter and become the first probe to explore the polar regions of Jupiter. The HST UV instruments (STIS and ACS) can greatly contribute to the success of the Juno mission by providing key complementary views of Jupiters UV aurora from Earth orbit. Juno carries an ultraviolet Spectrograph (UVS) and an infrared spectral mapper (JIRAM) that will obtain high-resolution spectral images providing the auroral counterpart to Junos in situ particles and fields measurements with the plasma JADE and JEDI particle detectors. The Juno mission will be the first opportunity to measure simultaneously the energetic particles at high latitude and the auroral emissions they produce. Following programmatic and technical limitations, the amount of UVS data transmitted to Earth will be severely restricted. Therefore, it is of extreme importance that HST captures as much additional information as possible on Jupiters UV aurora during the one-year life of the Juno mission. This white paper is a plea for a Juno initiative that will ensure that a sufficient number of orbits is allocated to this unique solar system mission.
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Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope (GAVRT) is a science education partnership among NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and the Lewis Center for Educational Research (LCER), offering unique opportunities for K -12 students and their teachers. As part of a long-term Jupiter synchrotron radiation (JSR) flux density monitoring program, LCER has been carrying out Jupiter observations with some student participation. In this paper we present the results of processed data sets observed between March 6, 2015 and April 6 2018. The data are divided into 5 epochs, grouped by time. We derive JSR beaming curves at different epochs and Earth declinations. We present a comparison of the observed beaming curves with those derived from most recent models for the radiation belts. Our results show an increasing trend of the JSR flux density which seem consistent with the models for the magnetospheric solar wind interactions.
The identity of the coloring agent(s) in Jupiters atmosphere and the exact structure of Jupiters uppermost cloud deck are yet to be conclusively understood. The Cr`{e}me Br^ulee model of Jupiters tropospheric clouds, originally proposed by Baines et al. (2014) and expanded upon by Sromovsky et al. (2017) and Baines et al. (2019), presumes that the chromophore measured by Carlson et al. (2016) is the singular coloring agent in Jupiters troposphere. In this work, we test the validity of the Cr`{e}me Br^ulee model of Jupiters uppermost cloud deck using spectra measured during the Juno spacecrafts 5$^{mathrm{th}}$ perijove pass in March 2017. These data were obtained as part of an international ground-based observing campaign in support of the Juno mission using the NMSU Acousto-optic Imaging Camera (NAIC) at the 3.5-m telescope at Apache Point Observatory in Sunspot, NM. We find that the Cr`{e}me Br^ulee model cloud layering scheme can reproduce Jupiters visible spectrum both with the Carlson et al. (2016) chromophore and with modifications to its imaginary index of refraction spectrum. While the Cr`{e}me Br^ulee model provides reasonable results for regions of Jupiters cloud bands such as the North Equatorial Belt and Equatorial Zone, we find that it is not a safe assumption for unique weather events, such as the 2016-2017 Southern Equatorial Belt outbreak that was captured by our measurements.
Observations of Jupiters gravity field by Juno have revealed surprisingly small values for the high order gravitational moments, considering the abundances of heavy elements measured by Galileo 20 years ago. The derivation of recent equations of state for hydrogen and helium, much denser in the Mbar region, worsen the conflict between these two observations. In order to circumvent this puzzle, current Jupiter model studies either ignore the constraint from Galileo or invoke an ad hoc modification of the equations of state. In this paper, we derive Jupiter models which satisfy both Juno and Galileo constraints. We confirm that Jupiters structure must encompass at least four different regions: an outer convective envelope, a region of compositional, thus entropy change, an inner convective envelope and an extended diluted core enriched in heavy elements, and potentially a central compact core. We show that, in order to reproduce Juno and Galileo observations, one needs a significant entropy increase between the outer and inner envelopes and a smaller density than for an isentropic profile, associated with some external differential rotation. The best way to fulfill this latter condition is an inward decreasing abundance of heavy elements in this region. We examine in details the three physical mechanisms able to yield such a change of entropy and composition: a first order molecular-metallic hydrogen transition, immiscibility between hydrogen and helium or a region of layered convection. Given our present knowledge of hydrogen pressure ionization, combination of the two latter mechanisms seems to be the most favoured solution.
The UVS instrument on the Juno mission recorded transient bright emission from a point source in Jupiters atmosphere. The spectrum shows that the emission is consistent with a 9600-K blackbody located 225 km above the 1-bar level and the duration of the emission was between 17 ms and 150 s. These characteristics are consistent with a bolide in Jupiters atmosphere. Based on the energy emitted, we estimate that the impactor had a mass of 250-5000 kg, which corresponds to a diameter of 1-4 m. By considering all observations made with Juno UVS over the first 27 perijoves of the mission, we estimate an impact flux rate of 24,000 per year for impactors with masses greater than 250-5000 kg.
Observations of Jupiters deep atmosphere by the Juno spacecraft have revealed several puzzling facts: The concentration of ammonia is variable down to pressures of tens of bars, and is strongly dependent on latitude. While most latitudes exhibit a low abundance, the Equatorial Zone of Jupiter has an abundance of ammonia that is high and nearly uniform with depth. In parallel, the Equatorial Zone is peculiar for its absence of lightning, which is otherwise prevalent most everywhere else on the planet. We show that a model accounting for the presence of small-scale convection and water storms originating in Jupiters deep atmosphere accounts for the observations. Where strong thunderstorms are observed on the planet, we estimate that the formation of ammonia-rich hail (mushballs) and subsequent downdrafts can deplete efficiency the upper atmosphere of its ammonia and transport it efficiently to the deeper levels. In the Equatorial Zone, the absence of thunderstorms shows that this process is not occurring, implying that small-scale convection can maintain a near-homogeneity of this region. A simple model satisfying mass and energy balance accounts for the main features of Junos MWR observations and successfully reproduces the inverse correlation seen between ammonia abundance and the lightning rate as function of latitude. We predict that in regions where ammonia is depleted, water should also be depleted to great depths. The fact that condensates are not well mixed by convection until far deeper than their condensation level has consequences for our understanding of Jupiters deep interior and of giant-planet atmospheres in general.
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