A SEARCH FOR MAGNESIUM IN EUROPA'S ATMOSPHERE

Journal Article · Wed Feb 20 00:00:00 EST 2013 · Astrophysical Journal Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/764/2/L28· OSTI ID:22130890

Hoerst, S. M. ^[1]

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1. Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado-Boulder, Boulder, CO (United States)

Europa's tenuous atmosphere results from sputtering of the surface. The trace element composition of its atmosphere is therefore related to the composition of Europa's surface. Magnesium salts are often invoked to explain Galileo Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer spectra of Europa's surface, thus magnesium may be present in Europa's atmosphere. We have searched for magnesium emission in the Hubble Space Telescope Faint Object Spectrograph archival spectra of Europa's atmosphere. Magnesium was not detected and we calculate an upper limit on the magnesium column abundance. This upper limit indicates that either Europa's surface is depleted in magnesium relative to sodium and potassium, or magnesium is not sputtered as efficiently resulting in a relative depletion in its atmosphere.

• OSTI ID: 22130890
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal Letters, Vol. 764, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 2041-8205
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTROPHYSICS
COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ABUNDANCE
EMISSION
MAGNESIUM
MAGNESIUM COMPOUNDS
PLANETS
POTASSIUM
SALTS
SATELLITE ATMOSPHERES
SATELLITES
SODIUM
SPACE
SPECTRA
SPECTROMETERS
SURFACES
TELESCOPES