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The composition and structure of Enceladus' plume from the complete set of Cassini UVIS occultation observations
Hansen, C. J.; Hendrix, A. R.; West, R. A. +4 more
Observations acquired at ultraviolet wavelengths are uniquely well-suited to investigate the composition and structure of Enceladus' plume. This paper describes the observations, analysis techniques and results of all the Enceladus occultations observed by Cassini's Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS) and other observations designed to study t…
The landscape of Saturn's internal magnetic field from the Cassini Grand Finale
Cao, Hao; Dougherty, Michele K.; Hunt, Gregory J. +5 more
The Cassini mission entered the Grand Finale phase in April 2017 and executed 22.5 highly inclined, close-in orbits around Saturn before diving into the planet on September 15th 2017. Here we present our analysis of the Cassini Grand Finale magnetometer (MAG) dataset, focusing on Saturn's internal magnetic field. These measurements demonstrate tha…
The gravity field and interior structure of Dione
Tortora, Paolo; Zannoni, Marco; Hemingway, Douglas +1 more
During its mission in the Saturn system, Cassini performed five close flybys of Dione. During three of them, radio tracking data were collected during the closest approach, allowing estimation of the full degree-2 gravity field by precise spacecraft orbit determination.
The gravity field of Dione is dominated by J2 and C22Labyrinth terrain on Titan
Malaska, Michael J.; Lopes, Rosaly M. C.; Solomonidou, Anezina +14 more
The Cassini/Huygens mission revealed a terrain type on Saturn's moon Titan of dissected, elevated plateaux with a high density of valleys named labyrinth terrain. We define four subtypes of labyrinth terrains: valleyed, polygonal, finely-dissected, and the possible outlier Kronin Labyrinth. We mapped the locations of all labyrinths imaged by Cassi…
Seasonal changes in the middle atmosphere of Titan from Cassini/CIRS observations: Temperature and trace species abundance profiles from 2004 to 2017
Bézard, Bruno; Vinatier, Sandrine; Jennings, Donald E. +6 more
The Cassini/Composite InfraRed Spectrometer (CIRS) instrument has been observing the middle atmosphere of Titan over almost half a Saturnian year. We used the CIRS dataset processed through the up-to-date calibration pipeline to characterize seasonal changes of temperature and abundance profiles in the middle atmosphere of Titan, from mid-northern…
Time variability of the Enceladus plumes: Orbital periods, decadal periods, and aperiodic change
Ingersoll, Andrew P.; Ewald, Shawn P.; Trumbo, Samantha K.
The Enceladus plumes vary on a number of timescales. Tidal stresses as Enceladus revolves in its eccentric orbit lead to a periodic diurnal variation in the mass and velocity of solid particles in the plume. Tidal stresses associated with an orbital resonance with Dione lead to a periodic decadal variation. Aperiodic variations occur on time scale…
Titan's neutral atmosphere seasonal variations up to the end of the Cassini mission
Flasar, F. M.; Lavvas, P.; Coustenis, A. +4 more
In this paper we report new results concerning the seasonal atmospheric evolution near Titan's poles and equator in terms of temperature and composition using nadir spectra acquired by the Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) at high spectral resolution during the last year of the Cassini mission in 2017 complementing previous investigat…
The small inner satellites of Saturn: Shapes, structures and some implications
Thomas, P.; Helfenstein, P.
Properties of the small inner satellites of Saturn are updated using final Cassini image data. The equatorial ridges on Pan and Atlas are morphologically, structurally, and gravitationally distinct from their cores and represent distinct additions to, rather than modifications of, the precursor bodies. Exposures of lineated substrates on Pandora a…
Spectral and emissivity analysis of the raised ramparts around Titan's northern lakes
Rodriguez, S.; Soderblom, J. M.; Janssen, M. A. +18 more
Some of Titan's small northern hemisphere lakes show raised rampart features (which are distinct from raised rims), and appear as SAR-bright mound-like annuli extending away from the lake for up to tens of kilometers from the shoreline. We investigate the infrared and microwave characteristics of these features using Cassini Visual and Infrared Ma…
Seasonal evolution of temperatures in Titan's lower stratosphere
Irwin, P. G. J.; Teanby, N. A.; Bézard, B. +4 more
The Cassini mission offered us the opportunity to monitor the seasonal evolution of Titan's atmosphere from 2004 to 2017, i.e. half a Titan year. The lower part of the stratosphere (pressures greater than 10 mbar) is a region of particular interest as there are few available temperature measurements, and because its thermal response to the seasona…