Using Jupiter’s Moon Io as a Plasma Probe

Abstract: The structure of the plasma in Jupiter’s vast magnetosphereis complicated and not fully understood. One way to study the plasma is to look at auroral emissions from the moonIo as it moves through different regions of the plasma torus that surrounds Jupiter. In this paper, the correlation between aurorabrightness on Io and the plasma density at the position of the moon is investigated. If a correlation exists, auroral emissonson Io could be used as a diagnostic for the current state ofJupiter’s plasma environment. For this purpose, a model of the Io plasma torus is developed, combining ideas from different existing models. The model is compared with observations of aurorae on Io made by the Hubble Space Telescope. Io’s position at the time of the observations is obtained with SPICE, a software developed by NASA. A moderate correlation is found when using the whole data set of observations. However, a strong correlation is found for observations on the dusk side of Jupiter. Strong correlations are also found when studying individual years and epochs.