Cassini: Electromagnetic Energy Moves Between Saturn & Enceladus
Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2018 5:52 pm
Listen: Sound of Electromagnetic Energy Moving Between Saturn, Enceladus
NASA | JPL-Caltech | Cassini | 2018 Jul 09
Enceladus Auroral Hiss Emissions During Cassini's Grand Finale - A. H. Sulaiman et al
Electrodynamic Interactions between Saturn and Its Rings - A. H. Sulaiman et al
NASA | JPL-Caltech | Cassini | 2018 Jul 09
New research from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft’s up-close Grand Finale orbits shows a surprisingly powerful and dynamic interaction of plasma waves moving from Saturn to its rings and its moon Enceladus. The observations show for the first time that the waves travel on magnetic field lines connecting Saturn directly to Enceladus. The field lines are like an electrical circuit between the two bodies, with energy flowing back and forth.Sounds of Saturn: Hear Radio Emissions of the Planet and Its Moon EnceladusClick to play embedded YouTube video.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Iowa
Researchers converted the recording of plasma waves into a “whooshing” audio file that we can hear -- in the same way a radio translates electromagnetic waves into music. In other words, Cassini detected electromagnetic waves in the audio frequency range -- and on the ground, we can amplify and play those signals through a speaker. The recording time was compressed from 16 minutes to 28.5 seconds.
Much like air or water, plasma (the fourth state of matter) generates waves to carry energy. The Radio Plasma Wave Science (RPWS) instrument on board NASA’s Cassini spacecraft recorded intense plasma waves during one of its closest encounters to Saturn. ...
Enceladus Auroral Hiss Emissions During Cassini's Grand Finale - A. H. Sulaiman et al
- Geophysical Research Letters (online 07 Jul 2018) DOI: 10.1029/2018GL078130
Electrodynamic Interactions between Saturn and Its Rings - A. H. Sulaiman et al
- Geophysical Research Letters (online 26 Apr 2018) DOI: 10.1029/2018GL077875