Showing papers in "Planetary and Space Science in 2003"

TL;DR: In this article, the ammonia mixing ratio on Jupiter has now been determined directly from the Galileo probe mass spectrometer (GPMS) data, and its value relative to H 2 (7.1±3.2)×10 −4 in the 9-12 bar region, is found to be similar to the previously reported result inferred from the radio attenuation technique on Galileo.

TL;DR: Using a one-dimensional photochemical model, an investigation into the chemical mechanisms responsible for the formation of Titan's haze region is conducted in this article, which demonstrates that the growth of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons throughout the lower stratosphere plays an important role in furnishing the main haze layer with nitriles playing a secondary role.

TL;DR: In this article, a series of simulations over a broad parameter range with the goal to fit the observed depth/diameter relationships as well as the observed threshold diameters on the Moon, Earth and Venus were carried out.

TL;DR: In this article, an analytic model of an impact-generated, steady-state, spherically symmetric dust cloud around an atmosphereless planetary satellite (or planet) is constructed.

TL;DR: In this paper, the role played by the properties of different phases of ice and the effect of irradiation on the icy surfaces of satellites in the outer solar system: sputtering, phase transformation, the production and trapping of molecular radiation products, and stress induced cracking.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors present observations of E keV/e backstreaming ions measured by the Cluster Ion Spectrometry experiment at 1-2RE upstream of the bow shock.

TL;DR: In this paper, the first experimental simulation including O-containing compounds in order to study the influence of the presence of CO on the chemical behavior of Titan's atmosphere has been carried out, with the help of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and infrared spectroscopy (IRS).

TL;DR: In this paper, the impact of the ionosphere on the radar sounding operation and data processing of the Mars Advance Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding (MARSIS) is quantified.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors used the geometric albedo and several results and constraints from other works to better constrain the vertical haze extinction profile, especially in the low stratosphere.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify shock surfing acceleration as an ideal pre-energization mechanism for the slow pick-up ions at quasiperpendicular shocks, and include lower-hybrid wave turbulence into the laminar model of shock surfing to explain the preferential acceleration of heavier particles as observed by Voyager at the termination shock.

TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of the metallic concentration in meteoric material in the Martian ionosphere has been investigated with the scope of exploring the possible existence of meteoric ionospheric layers as it occurs on Earth.

TL;DR: The D-CIXS Compact X-ray Spectrometer will provide high quality spectroscopic mapping of the Moon, the primary science target of the ESA SMART-1 mission and demonstrate a radically novel approach to building a type of instrument essential for the BepiColombo mission and potential future planetary science targets.

TL;DR: In this article, the first trace species were identified for the first time in Jupiter's stratosphere in the aftermath of the collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 in July 1994.

TL;DR: In this paper, an initial empirically based middle magnetosphere field and plasma configuration extending to 50RJ, which expands outwards to 70RJ or is compressed inwards to 30RJ due e.g. to sudden changes in the dynamic pressure of the solar wind.

TL;DR: A photochemical equilibrium model of the Martian ionosphere was used to model its behavior during the global dust storm of 1971-1972 as discussed by the authors. But the model was not used to explain the observed increase in altitude of the ionospheric peak electron density.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe a multidisciplinary facility that supports research in crystal growth of ices and other solid refractory materials, aerosol microphysics, light scattering properties of solid particles, the physics of icy particle aggregates, and radiation processing of molecular ices.

TL;DR: In this paper, an algorithm for the automatic recognition of impact craters is presented, based on Hough transforms and accounting for both the circularity of the crater rim and the presence of the internal depression.

TL;DR: In this paper, Krivov et al. lifted the assumption of spherical symmetry and focused on the asymmetry effects that result from the motion of the parent body through an isotropic field of impactors.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the general procedures for trajectory and atmospheric structure reconstruction and outline them here in detail, and discuss which physical properties are important in atmospheric entry, instead of working exclusively with the dimensionless numbers of fluid dynamics.

TL;DR: In this article, the modulation of the magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling currents in the Jovian middle magnetosphere by solar wind-induced compressions and expansions of magnetosphere was investigated.

TL;DR: The radar data from the Cassini spacecraft can be used in a passive radiometric mode to map the microwave emission from Titan, which will be the first resolved microwave emission measurements of an icy satellite as mentioned in this paper.

TL;DR: The ISEE-1 satellite has observed butterfly pitch-angle distributions (PAD) in protons and electrons from 20 keV to 2 MeV in the low latitude outer magnetosphere, which showed a sharp dropout in the flux of 90° pitch angle particles as mentioned in this paper.

TL;DR: In this article, the vapor pressure law of triacetylene is investigated in a limited temperature range (170-200 K ) allowing a calculation of its enthalpy of sublimation.

TL;DR: In this paper, a statistical study has been carried out of the availability of favorable flight opportunities to near-Earth asteroids with orbits similar to the Earth's, focusing on rendezvous-type mission profiles employing two-burn impulsive transfers.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide the data needed to interpret remote spectroscopic studies of O2 molecules embedded in the icy surfaces of outer solar system bodies, including Ganymede, Europa and Callisto.

TL;DR: In this article, the effects of grain size variations on reflectance spectra in the 2 − 40 μm range were investigated, and it was shown that the spectral contrast of the weakest bands decreases with decreasing grain size, while that the strongest bands usually reach a maximum for intermediate sizes.

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used a global magnetohydrodynamic simulation of the interaction of Jupiter's magnetosphere with the solar wind to investigate the effects of solar wind on the structure of currents in the jovian magnetosphere.

TL;DR: In this paper, it was shown that quasi-perpendicular shocks accelerate particles directly out of the incident thermal population to energies much higher than the upstream ram energy of the plasma.

TL;DR: In this paper, a two-stream radiative transfer modelling, including particulate aerosol content and surface albedo, indicates that the present abundance of SO2 does not provide any surface protection of the UV radiation, however, larger abundances of sulfur dioxide (mixing ratio, q, comprised between 10−5 and 10−4) introduced in the present 6 mbar Martian atmosphere can partially protect the surface from the harmful solar UV radiation.

TL;DR: In this article, a review of the current knowledge of Saturn's rings' physical properties as derived from thermal infrared observations is presented, including ring particle composition, surface structure and spin as well as the vertical structure of the main rings.