Related papers: VIPER - Student research on extraterrestrial ice p…
We constructed a 6-degrees of freedom rotational model of Titan as a 3-layer body consisting of a rigid core, a fluid global ocean, and a floating ice shell. The ice shell exhibits partially-compensated lateral thickness variations in order…
The crystalline state of water ice in the Solar System depends on the temperature history of the ice and the influence of energetic particles to which it has been exposed. We measured the infrared absorption spectra of amorphous and…
As a long-term energy source, tidal heating in subsurface oceans of icy satellites can influence their thermal, rotational, and orbital evolution, and the sustainability of oceans. We present a new theoretical treatment for tidal heating in…
Venus is known for its extreme surface temperature and its sulfuric acid clouds. But the cloud layers on Venus have similar temperature and pressure conditions to those on the surface of Earth and are conjectured to be a possible habitat…
The Mars thermosphere holds clues to the evolution of the Martian climate, and has practical implications for spacecraft visiting Mars, which often use it for aerobraking upon arrival, or for landers, which must pass through it.…
The modeling and simulation of heat source trajectories through phase-change materials is a relevant problem both for space exploration and for terrestrial climate research, among other fields. In space, the DLR and NASA are both interested…
In this work, we report on microgravity studies of particle ensembles simulating ice-particle collisions in Saturn's dense main rings. We have developed an experimental method to study the energy dissipation in a many-body system consisting…
In order to characterize the global circulation of the subsurface ocean of Jovian and Saturnian moons, we analyze the properties of 21 three-dimensional simulations of Boussinesq thermal convection in a rapidly rotating spherical shell.…
A laboratory experiment is suggested in which conditions similar to those in the plume ejecta from Enceladus and, perhaps, Europa are established. Using infrared spectroscopy and polarimetry, the experiment might identify possible…
Many planets orbit within an AU of their stars, raising questions about their origins. Particularly puzzling are the planets found near the silicate sublimation front. We investigate conditions near the front in the protostellar disk around…
We conduct laboratory experiments on the time evolution of an ice layer cooled from below and subjected to a turbulent shear flow of warm water from above. Our study is motivated by observations of warm water intrusion into the ocean cavity…
Few laboratory studies have investigated the vapor pressures of the volatiles that may be present as ices in the outer solar system; even fewer studies have investigated these species at the temperatures and pressures suitable to the…
Key questions surrounding the origin and evolution of Titan and the Saturnian system in which it resides remain following the Cassini-Huygens mission. In-situ measurements performed at key locations on the body are a highly effective way to…
This article provides an overview of how models of giant planet interiors are constructed. We review measurements from past space missions that provide constraints for the interior structure of Jupiter. We discuss typical three-layer…
We use the clathrate hydrate trapping theory (Lunine & Stevenson 1985) and the gas drag formalism of Weidenschilling (1977) to calculate the composition of ices incorporated in the interior of Ceres. In the spirit of the work of Cyr et al.…
In our solar system, the densely cloud-covered atmosphere of Venus stands out as an example of how polarimetry can be used to gain information on cloud composition and particle mean radius. With current interest running high on discovering…
Measurements in the atmosphere and at the surface of Venus are required to understand fundamental processes of how terrestrial planets evolve and how they work today. While the European Venus community is unified in its support of the…
Ocean worlds are prevalent in the solar system. Focusing on Enceladus, Titan, Europa, and Ganymede, I use rotating convection theory and numerical simulations to predict ocean currents and the potential for ice-ocean coupling. When the…
The deuterium to hydrogen ratio in water ice in a planetary body carries important information on the history of water processing and delivery in the protostellar nebula. For a giant planet satellite, the D/H ratio is also affected by the…
The European Space Agency's Ariel mission will conduct a survey of the atmospheric properties of exoplanets around bright stars. The mission is nominally divided into three Tiers. The Tier 1 survey will consist of low-precision observations…