Abstract
Observations of sodium D-line emission from Io and the magnetosphere of Jupiter are reported. A disk-shaped cloud of sodium is found to exist in the Jovian magnetosphere with an inner edge at about 4R ч and an outer edge at about 10R ч. The gravitational scale height above the equatorial plane is a few Jovian radii. The data are interpreted in terms of a sputtering model, in which the sodium required to maintain the cloud is sputtered off the surface of Io by trapped energetic radiation-belt protons. Conditions on the atmospheric density are obtained. The Keplerian orbits attainable by such escaping sputtered atoms can provide the observed spatial distribution. The required 500-keV proton flux required to provide the 1–10 keV protons which will sputter the sodium at the surface of Io is consistent with the limiting trapped flux determined by ion-cyclotron turbulence.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bates, D. R. and Mapleton, R. A.: 1966,Proc. Phys. Soc. London 87, 657.
Bergstrahl, J. T., Matson, D. L., and Johnson, T. V.: 1974, preprint, submitted toAstrophys. J. Letters.
Bigg, E. K.: 1964,Nature 203, 1008.
Binder, A. B. and Cruikshank, D. P.: 1964,Icarus 3, 299.
Brown, R. A.: 1974, in A. Woszczyk and C. Iwaniszewska (eds.), ‘Exploration of the Planetary System’,IAU Symp. 65, in press.
Brown, R. A. and Chaffee, F. H.: 1974,Astrophys. J. Letters 187, L123.
Carlson, J. W. and Judge, D. L.: 1974,J. Geophys. Res. 79, 3623.
Carter, G. and Colligan, J. S.: 1968,Ion Bombardment of Solids, Elsevier, New York.
Chamberlain, J. W.: 1961,Physics of The Aurora and Airglow, Academic Press, New York.
Coroniti, F. V.: 1975, in V. Formisano (ed.),The Magnetospheres of the Earth and Jupiter, D. Reidel, Dordrecht, pp. 375–395.
Coroniti, F. V., Kennel, C. F., and Thorne, R. M.: 1974,Astrophys. J. 189, 383.
Fanale, F. P., Johnson, T. V., and Matson, D. L.: 1974a,Bull. Am. Astron. Soc. 6, 384.
Fanale, F. P., Johnson, T. V., and Matson, D. L.: 1974b,Science 186, 922.
Fanale, F. P., Johnson, T. V., and Matson, D. L.: 1974c, Io's surface and the histories of the Galilean satellites,IAU Colloq. No. 28, ‘Planetary Satellites’, in press.
Fink, N., Dekkers, N. H., and Larson, H. P.: 1973,Astrophys. J. Letters 179, L155.
Grossman, A. S., Graboske, H. C., Pollock, J. B., Reynolds, R. T., and Summers, A.: 1972,Phys. Planetary Earth Int. 6, 91.
Gurnett, D. A.: 1972,Astrophys. J. 175, 525.
Halstead, J. B.: 1972,Physics of Atomic Collusions, 2nd ed., Elsevier, New York.
Humes, D. H., Alvarez, J. M., O'Neal, R. L., and Kinnard, W. H.: 1974,J. Geophys. Res. 79, 3677.
Judge, D. L. and Carlson, J. W.: 1974,Science 183, 317.
Junge, C. D., Oldenberg, O., and Wasson, J. T.: 1962,J. Geophys. Res. 67, 1027.
Kennel, C. F. and Coroniti, F. V.: 1975, in V. Formisano (ed.),The Magnetospheres of the Earth and Jupiter, D. Reidel, Dordrecht, pp. 435–461.
Kliore, A., Cain, D. L., Fjeldbo, G., Seidel, B. L., and Rasool, S. I.: 1974,Science 183, 323.
Kunkel, W. B.: 1966, in W. B. Kunkel (ed.),Plasma Physics in Theory and Application, McGraw-Hill, New York, Ch. 10, p. 300.
Macy, W., Jr. and Trafton, L.: 1975, ‘A model for Io's Atmosphere and Sodium Cloud’, Preprint, submitted toAstrophys. J.
Matson, D. L., Johnson, T. V., and Fanale, F. P.: 1974,Astrophys. J. Letters 192, L43.
McElroy, M. B. and Yung, Y. L.: 1975,Astrophys. J. 196, 227.
McElroy, M. B., Yung, Y. L., and Brown, R. A.: 1974,Astrophys. J. Letters 187, L125.
Mekler, Yu. and Eviatar, A.: 1974,Astrophys. J. Letters 193, L151.
Nash, D. B., Matson, D. L., Johnson, T. V., and Fanale, F. P.: 1975,J. Geophys. Res. 80, 1875.
Pilcher, C. B., Ridgeway, S. T., and McCord, T. B.: 1972,Science 178, 1087.
Pollack, J. B. and Reynolds, R. T.: 1974,Icarus 21, 248.
Shawhan, S. D., Goertz, C. K., Hubbard, R. F., Gurnett, D. A., and Joyce, G.: 1975, in V. Formisano (ed.),The Magnetosphres of the Earth and Jupiter, D. Reidel, Dordrecht, pp. 375–389.
Sill, G. T.: 1974,Bull. Am. Astron. Soc. 6, 384.
Sinton, W. M.: 1973,Icarus 20, 284.
Smith, E. J., Davis, L., Jr., Jones, D. E., Colburn, D. S., Coleman, P. J., Jr., Dyal, P., and Sonett, C. P.: 1974,Science 183, 305.
Tousey, R.: 1963,Space Sci. Rev. 2, 3.
Trafton, L., Parkinson, T., and Macy, W., Jr.: 1974,Astrophys. J. Letters 190, L85.
Trainor, J. H., Teegarden, B. J., Stilwell, D. E., McDonald, F. B., Roelof, E. C., and Webber, W. R.: 1974a,Science 183, 311.
Trainor, J. H., McDonald, F. B., Teegarden, B. J., Webber, W. R., and Roelof, E. C.: 1974b,J. Geophys. Res. 79, 3600.
Wamsteker, W., Kroes, R. L., and Fountain, J. A.: 1974,Icarus 23, 417.
Weil, G. and Joseph, J.: 1970,Compt. Rend. Acad. Sci. Paris 271, Serie B, 1013.
Wolfe, J. H., Collard, H. R., Mihalov, J. D., and Intriligator, D. S.: 1974,Science 183, 303.
Yung, Y. L.: 1974, ‘Io: Recent Observations’, Harvard preprint.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Publication No. 1410, Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles 90024, Cal., U.S.A.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Mekler, Y., Eviatar, A. & Coroniti, F.V. Sodium in the Jovian magnetosphere. Astrophys Space Sci 40, 63–72 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00651188
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00651188