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Cometary ions detected by the Cassini spacecraft 6.5 au downstream of Comet 153P/Ikeya-Zhang
Jones, G. H.; McComas, D. J.; Smith, E. J. +5 more
During March-April 2002, while between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn, the Cassini spacecraft detected a significant enhancement in pickup proton flux. The most likely explanation for this enhancement was the addition of protons to the solar wind by the ionization of neutral hydrogen in the corona of comet 153P/Ikeya-Zhang. This comet passed rel…
Student Dust Counter: Status report at 38 AU
Stern, S. A.; Szalay, J. R.; Spencer, J. +8 more
The Student Dust Counter (SDC) is an in-situ dust detector aboard the New Horizons spacecraft observing the distribution of interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) with mass >10-12 g or approximately 0.5 µm in radius. New Horizons was launched on January 19th, 2006 and performed a fly-by of the Pluto system on July 14th, 2015. SDC…
A unique volcanic field in Tharsis, Mars: Pyroclastic cones as evidence for explosive eruptions
Hauber, E.; Brož, P.
Based on theoretical grounds, explosive basaltic volcanism should be common on Mars, yet the available morphological evidence is sparse. We test this hypothesis by investigating a unique unnamed volcanic field north of the shield volcanoes Biblis Patera and Ulysses Patera on Mars, where we observe several small conical edifices and associated lava…
Strong interplanetary field enhancements at Ulysses—evidence of dust trails' interaction with the solar wind?
Balogh, André; Jones, Geraint H.; MacDowall, Robert J. +1 more
Interplanetary field enhancements were first discovered in the vicinity of Venus. These events are characterised by an increase in the magnitude of the heliospheric magnetic field with a near-symmetrical, sometimes thorn-shaped profile, and last from minutes to hours. Surveys of the events near Venus and Earth indicated clustering of the events in…
Heliospheric Latitude Variations of Properties of Cometary Plasma Tails: A Test of the Ulysses Comet Watch Paradigm
Brandt, John C.; Snow, Martin
Images of comets de Vico in 1995, Hyakutake in 1996, and Hale-Bopp in 1997 taken by observers in the Ulysses Comet Watch clearly show plasma tail properties reflecting the demarcation of the solar wind into distinct equatorial and polar regions with the boundary determined by the maximum extent of the heliospheric current sheet (HCS). Generally, (…
The Contribution of Asteroid Dust to the Interplanetary Dust Cloud: The Impact of ULYSSES Results on the Understanding of Dust Production in the Asteroid Belt and of the Formation of the IRAS Dust Bands
Mann, Ingrid; Grün, Eberhard; Wilck, Martin
Investigations of the zodiacal dust cloud give evidence for a significant contribution of asteroidal dust to the interplanetary dust cloud, a result which can now be compared to measurements of the ULYSSES dust detector during its passage of the asteroid belt. Especially we discuss the ULYSSES data with respect to the IRAS dust bands and consider …
Temperature inversion in the Io plasma torus.
Moncuquet, Michel; Meyer-Vernet, Nicole; Hoang, Sang
We present in situ measurements of electron parameters as a function of latitude in the Io plasma torus, deduced from an extended analysis of the radio and plasma wave data acquired on board Ulysses. We find that the density and temperature are anti-correlated and obey an approximate polytrope law Te ∝ √{1/ne}. We interpret t…