Characterizing the Enceladus torus by its contribution to Saturn’s Magnetosphere

• Main Authors: Jia, Ying-Dong, Wei, H., Russell, C., Khurana, K., Powell, R.
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: DigitalCommons@USU 2014
• Subjects: South Pole; South pole
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/yosemite_chapman/2014/all2014/67; https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/context/yosemite_chapman/article/1067/type/native/viewcontent

As an essential part of Saturn's Magnetosphere, the Enceladus torus is located in the region dominated by Saturn's internal magnetic field, and is strongly coupled with the ionosphere. The torus is supplied by the ejecta from the south pole of Enceladus, which travels in a circular orbit, and is seen varying in the past years. The cryovolcanic gas and grains are partly ionized, and thus interact with neutrals, plasma, and field in the inner magnetosphere. These interactions significantly distort the internal magnetic field of Saturn, and thus their effect can be used to assess the producting intensity of new materials. We survey the available Cassini observations for signals of such interactions in the past 8 years, and complete the interaction scenario with MHD modeling, to determine the spatial and temporal variation of the Enceladus torus. A wake is seen behind Enceladus, extending along the orbit, with a varying radial distance, suggesting radial flow deflection caused by charged dust particles. In addition to limiting the observed Enceladus activity, this study generates a 3-D model to better understand the dynamics of Saturn's inner magnetosphere, and also practices our multi-fluid MHD theory.