475 research outputs found
Dust Measurements in the Outer Solar System
Dust measurements in the outer solar system are reviewed. Only the plasma
wave instrument on board Voyagers 1 and 2 recorded impacts in the
Edgeworth-Kuiper belt (EKB). Pioneers 10 and 11 measured a constant dust flux
of 10-micron-sized particles out to 20 AU. Dust detectors on board Ulysses and
Galileo uniquely identified micron-sized interstellar grains passing through
the planetary system. Impacts of interstellar dust grains onto big EKB objects
generate at least about a ton per second of micron-sized secondaries that are
dispersed by Poynting-Robertson effect and Lorentz force. We conclude that
impacts of interstellar particles are also responsible for the loss of dust
grains at the inner edge of the EKB. While new dust measurements in the EKB are
in an early planning stage, several missions (Cassini and STARDUST) are en
route to analyze interstellar dust in much more detail.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, Proceedings of the ESO workshop on ``Minor
bodies in the outer solar system'
16 years of Ulysses Interstellar Dust Measurements in the Solar System: II. Fluctuations in the Dust Flow from the Data
The Ulysses spacecraft provided the first opportunity to identify and study
Interstellar Dust (ISD) in-situ in the Solar System between 1992 and 2007. Here
we present the first comprehensive analysis of the ISD component in the entire
Ulysses dust data set. We analysed several parameters of the ISD flow in a
time-resolved fashion: flux, flow direction, mass index, and flow width. The
general picture is in agreement with a time-dependent focussing/defocussing of
the charged dust particles due to long-term variations of the solar magnetic
field throughout a solar magnetic cycle of 22 years. In addition, we confirm a
shift in dust direction of in 2005, along with a
steep, size-dependent increase in flux by a factor of 4 within 8 months. To
date, this is difficult to interpret and has to be examined in more detail by
new dynamical simulations. This work is part of a series of three papers. This
paper concentrates on the time-dependent flux and direction of the ISD. In a
companion paper (Kr\"uger et al., 2015) we analyse the overall mass
distribution of the ISD measured by Ulysses, and a third paper discusses the
results of modelling the flow of the ISD as seen by Ulysses (Sterken et al.,
2015).Comment: 41 pages, 10 figures, 5 table
Impact-Generated Dust Clouds Surrounding the Galilean Moons
Tenuous dust clouds of Jupiter's Galilean moons Io, Europa, Ganymede and
Callisto have been detected with the in-situ dust detector on board the Galileo
spacecraft. The majority of the dust particles have been sensed at altitudes
below five radii of these lunar-sized satellites. We identify the particles in
the dust clouds surrounding the moons by their impact direction, impact
velocity, and mass distribution. Average particle sizes are 0.5 to , just above the detector threshold, indicating a size distribution with
decreasing numbers towards bigger particles. Our results imply that the
particles have been kicked up by hypervelocity impacts of micrometeoroids onto
the satellites' surfaces. The measured radial dust density profiles are
consistent with predictions by dynamical modeling for satellite ejecta produced
by interplanetary impactors (Krivov et al., PSS, 2003, 51, 251--269), assuming
yield, mass and velocity distributions of the ejecta from laboratory
measurements. The dust clouds of the three outer Galilean moons have very
similar properties and are in good agreement with the model predictions for
solid ice-silicate surfaces. The dust density in the vicinity of Io, however,
is more than an order of magnitude lower than expected from theory. This may be
due to a softer, fluffier surface of Io (volcanic deposits) as compared to the
other moons. The log-log slope of the dust number density in the clouds vs.
distance from the satellite center ranges between --1.6 and --2.8. Appreciable
variations of number densities obtained from individual flybys with varying
geometry, especially at Callisto, might be indicative of leading-trailing
asymmetries of the clouds due to the motion of the moons with respect to the
field of impactors.Comment: Icarus, in press, 46 pages, 16 figures, 5 table
A Simple Model for Understanding the DIM Dust Measurement at Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
We present a simple model for gas and dust flow from
67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko that can be used to understand the grain impact
observed by the DIM instrument on Philae (Krueger et al. 2015) We show how
model results when applied to the GIADA measurements (Rotundi et al. 2015;
Della Corte et al. 2015) can be used, in conjunction with the results found by
the MIRO (Schloerb et al. 2015) and VIRTIS (De Sanctis et al. 2015) instruments
to infer surface properties such as surface temperature and surface ice
fraction.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Planetary and Space
Scienc
Jovian dust streams: Probes of the Io plasma torus
Jupiter was discovered to be a source of high speed dust particles by the
Ulysses spacecraft in 1992. These dust particles originate from the volcanic
plumes on Io. They collect electrostatic charges from the plasma environment,
gain energy from the co-rotating electric field of the magnetosphere, and leave
Jupiter with escape speeds over . The dust streams were also
observed by the Galileo and Cassini spacecraft. While Ulysses and Cassini only
had a single encounter with Jupiter, Galileo has continuously monitored the
dust streams in the Jovian magnetosphere since 1996. The observed dust fluxes
exhibit large orbit-to-orbit variability due to both systematic and stochastic
changes. By combining the entire data set, the variability due to stochatic
processes can be approximately removed and a strong variation with Jovian local
time is found. This result is consistent with theoretical expectations and
confirms that the majority of the Jovian dust stream particles originate from
Io rather than other potential sources.Comment: 4 pages, 1 b/w figure, 2 color figures, accepted for Geophysical
Research Letter
Interstellar Dust in the Solar System: Model versus In-Situ Spacecraft Data
In the early 1990s, contemporary interstellar dust penetrating deep into the
heliosphere was identified with the in-situ dust detector on board the Ulysses
spacecraft. Later on, interstellar dust was also identified in the data sets
measured with dust instruments on board Galileo, Cassini and Helios. Ulysses
monitored the interstellar dust stream at high ecliptic latitudes for about 16
years. The three other spacecraft data sets were obtained in the ecliptic plane
and cover much shorter time intervals.We compare in-situ interstellar dust
measurements obtained with these four spacecrafts, published in the literature,
with predictions of a state-of-the-art model for the dynamics of interstellar
dust in the inner solar system (Interplanetary Meteoroid environment for
EXploration, IMEX), in order to test the reliability of the model predictions.
Micrometer and sub-micrometer sized dust particles are subject to solar gravity
and radiation pressure as well as to the Lorentz force on a charged dust
particle moving through the Interplanetary Magnetic Field. The IMEX model was
calibrated with the Ulysses interstellar dust measurements and includes these
relevant forces. We study the time-resolved flux and mass distribution of
interstellar dust in the solar system. The IMEX model agrees with the
spacecraft measurements within a factor of 2 to 3, also for time intervals and
spatial regions not covered by the original model calibration with the Ulysses
data set. It usually underestimates the dust fluxes measured by the space
missions which were not used for the model calibration, i.e. Galileo, Cassini
and Helios. IMEX is a unique time-dependent model for the prediction of
interstellar dust fluxes and mass distributions for the inner and outer solar
system. The model is suited to study dust detection conditions for past and
future space missions.Comment: 24 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl
Galileo In-Situ Dust Measurements in Jupiter's Gossamer Rings
During its late orbital mission at Jupiter the Galileo spacecraft made two
passages through the giant planet's gossamer ring system. The impact-ionization
dust detector on board successfully recorded dust impacts during both ring
passages and provided the first in-situ measurements from a dusty planetary
ring. In all, a few thousand dust impacts were counted with the instrument
accumulators during both ring passages, but only a total of 110 complete data
sets of dust impacts were transmitted to Earth. Detected particle sizes range
from about 0.2 to 5 micron, extending the known size distribution by an order
of magnitude towards smaller particles than previously derived from optical
imaging (Showalter et al. 2008). The grain size distribution increases towards
smaller particles and shows an excess of these tiny motes in the Amalthea
gossamer ring compared to the Thebe ring. The size distribution for the
Amalthea ring derived from our in-situ measurements for the small grains agrees
very well with the one obtained from images for large grains. Our analysis
shows that particles contributing most to the optical cross-section are about 5
micron in radius, in agreement with imaging results. The measurements indicate
a large drop in particle flux immediately interior to Thebe's orbit and some
detected particles seem to be on highly-tilted orbits with inclinations up to
20 deg.Comment: 13 figures, 4 tables, submitted to Icaru
Heliospheric modulation of the interstellar dust flow on to Earth
Aims. Based on measurements by the Ulysses spacecraft and high-resolution
modelling of the motion of interstellar dust (ISD) through the heliosphere we
predict the ISD flow in the inner planetary system and on to the Earth. This is
the third paper in a series of three about the flow and filtering of the ISD.
Methods. Micrometer- and sub-micrometer-sized dust particles are subject to
solar gravity and radiation pressure as well as to interactions with the
interplanetary magnetic field that result in a complex size-dependent flow
pattern of ISD in the planetary system. With high-resolution dynamical
modelling we study the time-resolved flux and mass distribution of ISD and the
requirements for detection of ISD near the Earth.
Results. Along the Earth orbit the density, speed, and flow direction of ISD
depend strongly on the Earth's position and the size of the interstellar
grains. A broad maximum of the ISD flux (2x10^{-4}/m^2/s of particles with
radii >~0.3\mu m) occurs in March when the Earth moves against the ISD flow.
During this time period the relative speed with respect to the Earth is highest
(~60 km/s), whereas in September when the Earth moves with the ISD flow, both
the flux and the speed are lowest (<~10 km/s). The mean ISD mass flow on to the
Earth is ~100 kg/year with the highest flux of ~3.5kg/day occurring for about 2
weeks close to the end of the year when the Earth passes near the narrow
gravitational focus region downstream from the Sun. The phase of the 22-year
solar wind cycle has a strong effect on the number density and flow of
sub-micrometer-sized ISD particles. During the years of maximum electromagnetic
focussing (year 2031 +/- 3) there is a chance that ISD particles with sizes
even below 0.1\mu m can reach the Earth.
Conclusions. We demonstrate that ISD can be effectively detected, analysed,
and collected by space probes at 1 AU distance from the Sun.Comment: 17 pages, 17 figure
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