Search Publications
The haze and methane distributions on Uranus from HST-STIS spectroscopy
Karkoschka, Erich; Tomasko, Martin
We analyzed a unique, three-dimensional data set of Uranus acquired with the STIS Hubble spectrograph on August 19, 2002. The data covered a full afternoon hemisphere at 0.1 arc-sec spatial resolution between 300 and 1000 nm wavelength at 1 nm resolution. Navigation was accurate to 0.002 arc-sec and 0.02 nm. We tested our calibration with WFPC2 im…
The correlated colors of transneptunian binaries
Buie, M. W.; Grundy, W. M.; Noll, K. S. +3 more
We report resolved photometry of the primary and secondary components of 23 transneptunian binaries obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope. V-I colors of the components range from 0.7 to 1.5 with a median uncertainty of 0.06 magnitudes. The colors of the primaries and secondaries are correlated with a Spearman rank correlation probability of 99.…
Io's dayside SO 2 atmosphere
Feldman, Paul D.; Feaga, Lori M.; McGrath, Melissa
An extensive set of HI Lyman- α images obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) from 1997-2001 has been analyzed to provide information about the spatial and temporal character of Io's SO 2 atmosphere. An atmospheric distribution map derived from the observations reveals that the sunlit …
Jupiter’s shrinking Great Red Spot and steady Oval BA: Velocity measurements with the ‘Advection Corrected Correlation Image Velocimetry’ automated cloud-tracking method
de Pater, Imke; Wong, Michael H.; Marcus, Philip S. +1 more
We show that between 1996 and 2006, the area circumscribed by the high-speed collar of the Great Red Spot (GRS) shrunk by 15%, while the peak velocities within its collar remained constant. This shrinkage indicates a dynamical change in the GRS because the region circumscribed by the collar is nearly coincident with the location of the potential v…
The colors of cometary nuclei—Comparison with other primitive bodies of the Solar System and implications for their origin
Lamy, P.; Toth, I.
We present new color results of cometary nuclei obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) whose superior resolution enables us to accurately isolate the nucleus signals from the surrounding comae. By combining with scrutinized available data obtained with ground-based telescopes, we accumulated a sample of 51 cometary nuclei, 44 ecliptic come…
The jovian anticyclone BA. II. Circulation and interaction with the zonal jets
Hueso, R.; Sánchez-Lavega, A.; García-Melendo, E. +2 more
In this second part of our study of the large jovian anticyclone BA we present detailed measurements of its internal circulation and numerical models of its interaction with the zonal jets and nearby cyclonic regions. We characterized the flow using high-resolution observations obtained by the Cassini spacecraft in December 2000 (9 months after th…
Distribution and properties of fragments and debris from the split Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 as revealed by Spitzer Space Telescope
Reach, William T.; Lisse, Carey M.; Sykes, Mark V. +2 more
During 2006 March-2007 January, we used the IRAC and MIPS instruments on the Spitzer Space Telescope to study the infrared emission from the ensemble of fragments, meteoroids, and dust tails in the more than 3° wide 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 debris field. We also investigated contemporaneous ground-based and HST observations. In 2006 May, 55 frag…
Characteristics of Saturn's polar atmosphere and auroral electrons derived from HST/STIS, FUSE and Cassini/UVIS spectra
Feldman, P. D.; Gérard, J. -C.; Grodent, D. +3 more
Ultraviolet (UV) spectra of Saturn's aurora obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS), the Cassini Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS) and the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) have been analyzed. Comparisons between the observed spectra and synthetic models of electron-excited H 2 have been us…
Uranus at equinox: Cloud morphology and dynamics
Sromovsky, L. A.; Fry, P. M.; Showalter, M. R. +5 more
As the 7 December 2007 equinox of Uranus approached, collaboration between ring and atmosphere observers in the summer and fall of 2007 produced a substantial collection of ground-based observations using the 10-m Keck telescope with adaptive optics and space-based observations with the Hubble Space Telescope. Both near-infrared and visible-wavele…
The Dark Spot in the atmosphere of Uranus in 2006: Discovery, description, and dynamical simulations
Sromovsky, L. A.; Fry, P. M.; Hammel, H. B. +6 more
We report the first definitive detection of a discrete dark atmospheric feature on Uranus in 2006 using visible and near-infrared images from the Hubble Space Telescope and the Keck II 10-m telescope. Like Neptune's Great Dark Spots, this Uranus Dark Spot had bright companion features that exhibited considerable variability in brightness and locat…