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EP: Fachverband Extraterrestrische Physik

EP 14: Planets and Small Bodies III

EP 14.6: Talk

Thursday, April 2, 2009, 17:15–17:30, HS-Ost Pharmazie

Europa's ultraviolet aurora: Simulation and interpretation of Hubble Space Telescope observations — •Lorenz Roth, Joachim Saur, and Nico Schilling — Institut für Geophysik und Meteorologie, Universität zu Köln, Deutschland

Hubble Space Telescope observations of Europa's ultraviolet aurora revealed a surprisingly complex pattern of emission. To explain the observed auroral morphology, an inhomogeneously distributed atmosphere as well as a complex and asymmetric plasma interaction of the Jovian magnetosphere with the moon need to be considered. We developed a model to study the influence of both contributions on the formation of the aurora. Our simulation takes into account not only the ionospheric plasma interaction but also magnetic induction in a possible subsurface ocean at Europa. Assuming a homogenous global atmosphere the results show that the observed auroral features can be explained to some extent only by the electrodynamic effects. Additionally, we show that a locally enhanced atmospheric density including the complex plasma interaction creates a local emission maximum as well.