Related papers: The radiation belts of Jupiter and Saturn
Jupiter has the most energetic and complex radiation belts in our solar system. Their hazardous environment is the reason why so many spacecraft avoid rather than investigate them, and explains how they have kept many of their secrets so…
For its beautiful rings, active atmosphere and mysterious magnetic field, Saturn is a fascinating planet. It also holds some of the keys to understanding the formation of our Solar System and the evolution of giant planets in general. While…
Detection of radio emission from Jupiter was identified quickly as being due to its planetary-scale magnetic field. Subsequent spacecraft investigations have revealed that many of the planets, and even some moons, either have or have had…
The giant planets were the first to form and hold the key to unveiling the solar system's formation history in their interiors and atmospheres. Furthermore, the unique conditions present in the interiors of the giant planets make them…
We predict how a remote observer would see the brightness variations of giant planets similar to Jupiter and Saturn as they orbit their central stars. We model the geometry of Jupiter, Saturn and Saturn's rings for varying orbital and…
The shape of the two gas giants, Jupiter and Saturn, is determined primarily by their rotation rate, and interior density distribution. It is also affected by their zonal winds, causing an anomaly of O(10 km) at low latitudes. However,…
We review the interior structure and evolution of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, and giant exoplanets with particular emphasis on constraining their global composition. Compared to the first edition of this review, we provide a new…
Jupiter, Saturn, and Earth - the three planets having dense atmosphere and a well developed magnetosphere - are known to emit X-rays. Recently, Chandra X-ray Observatory has observed X-rays from these planets, and XMM-Newton has observed…
Jupiter's banded appearance may appear unchanging to the casual observer, but closer inspection reveals a dynamic, ever-changing system of belts and zones with distinct cycles of activity. Identification of these long-term cycles requires…
The atmospheres of the four giant planets of our Solar System share a common and well-observed characteristic: they each display patterns of planetary banding, with regions of different temperatures, composition, aerosol properties and…
Radio observations of ultracool dwarfs, objects comprising brown dwarfs and the very lowest mass stars, have mainly focused on analyzing their light-curve and spectral energy distributions providing valuable insights into their magnetic…
The wealth of observational data about Jupiter and Saturn provides strong constraints to guide our understanding of the formation of giant planets. The size of the core and the total amount of heavy elements in the envelope have been…
The outer giant planets, Uranus and Neptune, pose a challenge to theories of planet formation. They exist in a region of the Solar System where long dynamical timescales and a low primordial density of material would have conspired to make…
Outer satellites of the planets have distant, eccentric orbits that can be highly inclined or even retrograde relative to the equatorial planes of their planets. These irregular orbits cannot have formed by circumplanetary accretion and are…
Remote sensing observations meet some limitations when used to study the bulk atmospheric composition of the giant planets of our solar system. A remarkable example of the superiority of in situ probe measurements is illustrated by the…
The best constraints on the internal structures of giant planets have historically come from measurements of their gravity fields. These gravity data are inherently mostly sensitive to a planet's outer regions, providing only loose…
Jupiter's radio emission has been linked to its planetary-scale magnetic field, and spacecraft investigations have revealed that most planets, and some moons, have or had a global magnetic field. Generated by internal dynamos, magnetic…
Radiation belts are present in all large-scale Solar System planetary magnetospheres: Earth, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. These persistent equatorial zones of trapped high energy particles up to tens of MeV can produce bright radio…
The weather layers of the gas giant planets, Jupiter and Saturn, comprise the shallow atmospheric layers that are influenced energetically by a combination of incoming solar radiation and localised latent heating of condensates, as well as…
Saturn's magnetospheric magnetic field, planetary radio emissions, plasma populations and magnetospheric structure are all known to be modulated at periods close to the assumed rotation period of the planetary interior. These oscillations…