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Saturn from Cassini-Huygens pp 333–374Cite as

Auroral Processes

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Abstract

Cassini has afforded a number of unique opportunities to understand auroral processes at Saturn and to highlight both differences and similarities with auroral physics at both Earth and Jupiter. A number of campaigns were coordinated with the Hubble Space Telescope such that Cassini could provide either ground truth on the impinging solar wind or in situ measurements of magnetospheric conditions leading to qualitative and sometimes quantitative relationships between the solar wind influence on the intensity, the morphology and evolution of the auroras, and magneto-spheric dynamics. The Hubble UV images are enhanced by Cassini's own remote sensing of the auroras. Cassini's in situ studies of the structure and dynamics of the magnetosphere discussed in other chapters of this book provide the context for understanding the primary drivers of Saturn's auroras and the role of magnetospheric dynamics in their variations. Finally, Cassini's three dimensional prime mission survey of the magnetosphere culminates in high inclination orbits placing it at relatively small radial distances while on auroral field lines, providing the first such in situ observations of auroral particles and fields at a planet other than Earth. The new observations have spawned a number of efforts to model the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere and understand how such dynamics influence the auroras.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department Physics and Astronomy, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA

    W. S. Kurth & A. M. Persoon

  2. Department Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, LE1 7RH, Great Britain

    E. J. Bunce & T. Stallard

  3. Center for Space Physics, Boston University, BO, MA, 02215, USA

    J. T. Clarke

  4. Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX, 78228, USA

    F. J. Crary

  5. LPAP, Université de Liège, B-4000, Liège, Belgium

    D. C. Grodent

  6. Caltech, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA

    A. P. Ingersoll & U. A. Dyudina

  7. LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Meudon, 92195, France

    L. Lamy

  8. Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD, 20723, USA

    D. G. Mitchell

  9. Dept. Physics, Central Arizona College, Coolidge, AZ, 85228, USA

    W. R. Pryor

  10. Institute of Geophysics and Meteorology, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    J. Saur

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  1. Imperial College, The Blackett Laboratory, Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom

    Michele K. Dougherty

  2. University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder CO, 80309-0449, USA

    Larry W. Esposito

  3. Applied Physics Lab, Johns Hopkins University, 11100 John Hopkins Rd, Laurel, MD, 20723, USA

    Stamatios M. Krimigis

  4. Center for Space Research and Technology, Academy of Athens, Soranou Efesiou 4, Athens, 11527, Greece

    Stamatios M. Krimigis

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Kurth, W.S. et al. (2009). Auroral Processes. In: Dougherty, M.K., Esposito, L.W., Krimigis, S.M. (eds) Saturn from Cassini-Huygens. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9217-6_12

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