Magnetospheric studies: a requirement for addressing interdisciplinary mysteries in the Ice Giant systems
File(s)Kollmann2020_Article_MagnetosphericStudiesARequirem.pdf (1.79 MB)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Uranus and Neptune are the least-explored planets in our Solar System. This paper summarizes
mysteries about these incredibly intriguing planets and their environments spurred by our limited
observations from Voyager 2 and Earth-based systems. Several of these observations are either
inconsistent with our current understanding built from exploring other planetary systems, or
indicate such unique characteristics of these Ice Giants that they leave us with more questions than
answers. This paper specifically focuses on the value of all aspects of magnetospheric
measurements, from the radiation belt structure to plasma dynamics to coupling to the solar wind,
through a future mission to either of these planets. Such measurements have large interdisciplinary
value, as demonstrated by the large number of mysteries discussed in this paper that cover other
non-magnetospheric disciplines, including planetary interiors, atmospheres, rings, and moons.
mysteries about these incredibly intriguing planets and their environments spurred by our limited
observations from Voyager 2 and Earth-based systems. Several of these observations are either
inconsistent with our current understanding built from exploring other planetary systems, or
indicate such unique characteristics of these Ice Giants that they leave us with more questions than
answers. This paper specifically focuses on the value of all aspects of magnetospheric
measurements, from the radiation belt structure to plasma dynamics to coupling to the solar wind,
through a future mission to either of these planets. Such measurements have large interdisciplinary
value, as demonstrated by the large number of mysteries discussed in this paper that cover other
non-magnetospheric disciplines, including planetary interiors, atmospheres, rings, and moons.
Date Issued
2020-06-26
Date Acceptance
2020-05-13
Citation
Space Science Reviews, 2020, 216
ISSN
0038-6308
Publisher
Springer Verlag
Journal / Book Title
Space Science Reviews
Volume
216
Copyright Statement
© 2020 The Author(s). This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Sponsor
The Royal Society
Grant Number
UF150547
Subjects
Astronomy & Astrophysics
0201 Astronomical and Space Sciences
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
ARTN 78