The flux and source of energetic protons in Saturn's inner magnetosphere
The flux of energetic protons in Saturn's inner magnetosphere was observed in two channels from 48 to 63 and 63 to 160 MeV. Absorption features due to the G ring and the satellites Enceladus and Mimas were easily identifiable. The flux observed in the absorption slot of Mimas can be maintained by the decay of a cosmic ray albedo neutron flux of 0.007/sq cm/s/sr. This flux is entirely consistent with calculations of the neutron flux produced by galactic cosmic ray interactions with the rings of Saturn. The omnidirectional proton flux of 0.0082/sq cm/s at 2.734 R sub s requires a residence time of 30 years. Both the residence time and the energy spectrum are comparable to those found in the inner radiation belt of the Earth. The angular distribution is nearly isotropic in the Mimas slot and beyond 4R sub s. Otherwise the pitch angle distribution is pancake and is approximated by sin(n)theta with n in the range 2 to 7. This distribution is consistent with an isotropic neutron source in the ring plane.
- Research Organization:
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Greenbelt, MD (USA). Goddard Space Flight Center
- OSTI ID:
- 5772705
- Report Number(s):
- N-8322084; NASA-TM-84938
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ANGULAR DISTRIBUTION
ATMOSPHERES
BARYONS
COSMIC RAY FLUX
DISTRIBUTION
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ENERGY SPECTRA
FERMIONS
HADRONS
NEUTRONS
NUCLEONS
PLANETARY ATMOSPHERES
PLANETARY MAGNETOSPHERES
PLANETS
PROTONS
RADIATION FLUX
SATURN PLANET
SPACE VEHICLES
SPECTRA
VEHICLES
VOYAGER SPACE PROBES