A Rotating Azimuthally Distributed Auroral Current System on Saturn Revealed by the Cassini Spacecraft

Guo，R. L.1,2,3; Yao，Z. H.1; Dunn，W. R.4,5; Palmaerts，B.2; Sergis，N.6,7; Grodent，D.2; Badman，S. V.8; Ye，S. Y.9; Pu，Z. Y.10; Mitchell，D. G.11; Zhang，B. Z.12; Achilleos，N.5,13; Coates，A. J.4,5; Wei，Y.1; Waite，J. H.14; Krupp，N.15; Dougherty，M. K.16

2021-10-01

10.3847/2041-8213/ac26b5

Astrophysical Journal Letters   影响因子和分区

2041-8205

2041-8213

Stunning aurorae are mainly produced when accelerated electrons travel along magnetic field lines to collide with the atmosphere. The motion of electrons often corresponds to the evolution of a magnetic field-aligned current system. In the terrestrial magnetosphere, the current system is formed at the night-side sector, and thus produces an auroral bulge at night. Due to the different energy sources between Saturn and the Earth, it is expected that their auroral current systems are fundamentally different, although the specific auroral driver at Saturn is poorly understood. Using simultaneous measurements of the aurora, particles, magnetic fields, and energetic neutral atoms, we reveal that a chain of paired currents, each of which includes a downward and an upward current branch, is formed in Saturn's magnetosphere, which generates separated auroral patches. These findings inform similar auroral current structures between the Earth and Saturn, while the difference is that Saturn's unique mass and energy sources lead to a rotational characteristic.

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WOS:000702529400001

2-s2.0-85116480012

Scopus

1.Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics,Institute of Geology and Geophysics,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing,100029,China
2.Laboratory for Planetary and Atmospheric Physics,STAR Institute,Université de Liège,Liège,B-4000,Belgium
3.Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment,Institute of Space Sciences,School of Space Science and Physics,Shandong University,Weihai,Shandong,China
4.Mullard Space Science Laboratory,University College London,Dorking,Holmbury St. Mary,RH5 6NT,United Kingdom
5.Centre for Planetary Sciences,UCL/Birkbeck,London,WC1E 6BT,United Kingdom
6.Office of Space Research and Technology,Academy of Athens,Athens,106 79,Greece
7.Institute of Astronomy,Astrophysics,Space Applications and Remote Sensing,National Observatory of Athens,Athens,118 10,Greece
8.Department of Physics,Lancaster University,Lancaster,LA1 4YB,United Kingdom
9.Department of Earth and Space Sciences,Southern University of Science and Technology,Shenzhen,518055,China
10.School of Earth and Space Sciences,Peking University,Beijing,100871,China
11.Applied Physics Laboratory,Johns Hopkins University,Laurel,20723,United States
12.Department of Earth Sciences,University of Hong Kong,Hong Kong,Hong Kong
13.Department of Physics and Astronomy,University College London,London,WC1E 6BT,United Kingdom
14.Southwest Research Institute,San Antonio,78238,United States
15.Max-Planck-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung,Göttingen,D-37077,Germany
16.Faculty of Natural Sciences,Department of Physics,Imperial College London,London,SW7 2AZ,United Kingdom

Guo，R. L.,Yao，Z. H.,Dunn，W. R.,et al. A Rotating Azimuthally Distributed Auroral Current System on Saturn Revealed by the Cassini Spacecraft[J]. Astrophysical Journal Letters,2021,919(2).

Guo，R. L..,Yao，Z. H..,Dunn，W. R..,Palmaerts，B..,Sergis，N..,...&Dougherty，M. K..(2021).A Rotating Azimuthally Distributed Auroral Current System on Saturn Revealed by the Cassini Spacecraft.Astrophysical Journal Letters,919(2).

Guo，R. L.,et al."A Rotating Azimuthally Distributed Auroral Current System on Saturn Revealed by the Cassini Spacecraft".Astrophysical Journal Letters 919.2(2021).