. 24/7 Space News .
OUTER PLANETS
Juno tunes into Jovian radio triggered by Jupiter's volcanic moon Io
by Bill Steigerwald
Washington DC (SPX) Jul 16, 2021

This is a representation of the Jupiter-Io system and interaction. The blue cloud is the Io plasma torus, which is a region of higher concentration of ions and electrons located at Io's orbit. This conceptual image shows the radio emission pattern from Jupiter. The multi-colored lines represent the magnetic field lines that link Io's orbit with Jupiter's atmosphere. The radio waves emerge from the source which is located at the line of force in the magnetic field and propagate along the walls of a hollow cone (grey area). Juno receives the signal only when Jupiter's rotation sweeps that cone over the spacecraft, in the same way a lighthouse beacon shines briefly upon a ship at sea. Juno's orbit is represented by the white line crossing the cone.

By listening to the rain of electrons flowing onto Jupiter from its intensely volcanic moon Io, researchers using NASA's Juno spacecraft have found what triggers the powerful radio emissions within the monster planet's gigantic magnetic field. The new result sheds light on the behavior of the enormous magnetic fields generated by gas-giant planets like Jupiter.

Jupiter has the largest, most powerful magnetic field of all the planets in our solar system, with a strength at its source about 20,000 times stronger than Earth's. It is buffeted by the solar wind, a stream of electrically charged particles and magnetic fields constantly blowing from the Sun.

Depending on how hard the solar wind blows, Jupiter's magnetic field can extend outward as much as two million miles (3.2 million kilometers) toward the Sun and stretch more than 600 million miles (over 965 million kilometers) away from the Sun, as far as Saturn's orbit.

Jupiter has several large moons that orbit within its massive magnetic field, with Io being the closest. Io is caught in a gravitational tug-of-war between Jupiter and the neighboring two of these other large moons, which generates internal heat that powers hundreds of volcanic eruptions across its surface.

These volcanoes collectively release one ton of material (gases and particles) per second into space near Jupiter. Some of this material splits up into electrically charged ions and electrons and is rapidly captured by Jupiter's magnetic field.

As Jupiter's magnetic field sweeps past Io, electrons from the moon are accelerated along the magnetic field toward Jupiter's poles. Along their way, these electrons generate "decameter" radio waves (so-called decametric radio emissions or DAM). The Juno Waves instrument can "listen" to this radio emission that the raining electrons generate.

The researchers used the Juno Waves data to identify the precise locations within Jupiter's vast magnetic field where these radio emissions originated. These locations are where conditions are just right to generate the radio waves; they have the right magnetic field strength and the right density of electrons (not too much and not too little), according to the team.

"The radio emission is likely constant, but Juno has to be in the right spot to listen," said Yasmina Martos of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland and the University of Maryland, College Park. The radio waves emerge from the source along the walls of a hollow cone aligned with and controlled by the strength and shape of the magnetic field of Jupiter.

Juno receives the signal only when Jupiter's rotation sweeps that cone over the spacecraft, in the same way a lighthouse beacon shines briefly upon a ship at sea. Martos is lead author of a paper about this research published in June 2020 in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Planets.

Data from Juno allowed the team to calculate that the energy of the electrons generating the radio waves was far higher than previously estimated, as much as 23 times greater. Also, the electrons do not necessarily need to come from a volcanic moon. For example, they could be in the planet's magnetic field (magnetosphere) or come from the Sun as part of the solar wind, according to the team.


Related Links
Juno
The million outer planets of a star called Sol


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


OUTER PLANETS
Ride with Juno as it flies past Jupiter and Ganymede
Pasadena CA (JPL) Jul 15, 2021
On June 7, 2021, NASA's Juno spacecraft flew closer to Jupiter's ice-encrusted moon Ganymede than any spacecraft in more than two decades. Less than a day later, Juno made its 34th flyby of Jupiter, racing over its roiling atmosphere from pole to pole in less than three hours. Using the spacecraft's JunoCam imager, the mission team has put together this animation to provide a "starship captain" point of view of each flyby. "The animation shows just how beautiful deep space exploration can be," sai ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

OUTER PLANETS
How can you become a space tourist?

Who's who on Blue Origin's first crewed flight

Earth's richest man Bezos to blast off into space

With the HUMANS project, a message that space is for everyone

OUTER PLANETS
Long March 2C rocket carrying four satellites launched

Thruster research to help propel spacecraft

Amazon magnate Bezos ready to ride his own rocket to space

China's experimental space plane aces test flight

OUTER PLANETS
NASA studies bigger, better Mars helicopter

ExoMars orbiter continues hunt for key signs of life on Mars

Zhurong rover visits parachute and backshell

Mars Helicopter reveals intriguing terrain for rover team

OUTER PLANETS
China's five-star red flag flies proudly on red planet

China's Commercial Space Industry

Exercise bike in space helps keep crew fit

Homemade spacesuits ensure safety of Chinese astronauts in space

OUTER PLANETS
Funding partnerships launch the UK-Australia Space Bridge

Space, the final frontier for billionaire Richard Branson

Department of Space's commercial arm NewSpace India can also lease ISRO assets

OneWeb and BT to explore rural connectivity solutions for UK

OUTER PLANETS
Scientists created several samples of glasses for protection against nuclear radiation

Rescuing Integral: No thrust? No problem

New material could mean lightweight armor, protective coatings

Britain supports U.S. plan for deep space radar station

OUTER PLANETS
First measurement of isotopes in atmosphere of exoplanet

A potential new tracer of exoplanet formation

Brainless slime molds 'think' their way through the environment

TESS discovers stellar siblings host 'teenage' exoplanets

OUTER PLANETS
Juno tunes into Jovian radio triggered by Jupiter's volcanic moon Io

Ride with Juno as it flies past Jupiter and Ganymede

The mystery of what causes Jupiter's X-ray auroras is solved

Surface of Jupiter's moon Europa churned by small impacts









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.