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Dust Emission by Active Moons

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Abstract

In recent decades, volcanic and cryovolcanic activity on moons within the Solar System has been recognised as an important source of cosmic dust. Two moons, Jupiter’s satellite Io and Saturn’s satellite Enceladus, are known to be actively emitting dust into circumplanetary and interplanetary space. A third moon, Europa, shows tantalising hints of activity. Here we review current observations and theories concerning the generation, emission and evolution of cosmic dust arising from these objects.

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Notes

  1. Given the high speed of dust in the Jovian and Saturnian “streams” (although squalls may be a better name—see Sect. 6), it is also likely that active moons inject dust into the local interstellar environment, making them also a source of interstellar dust.

  2. Strictly speaking the primary energy sources for the moons considered here are originally exogenic, being the motion of planet and satellite.

  3. First observation where known, publication where not.

  4. Estimates of the exact contribution are strongly model dependent.

  5. Methane may also form during the production of magnetite if CO2 is present.

  6. Values given for a core-appropriate pressure of 8 GPa.

  7. The large sizes inferred from remote observation (Jaumann et al. 2008) probably result from thermal annealing of grains after deposition.

  8. The “Tiger Stripe” sulci appear to have dark flanks in the IR (Porco et al. 2006), which may have given rise to the nickname.

  9. To maintain an ocean surface area of approximately \(10~\mbox{km}^{2}\) (Postberg et al. 2009b, 2011b) and assuming subsurface fracture lengths similar to those (500 km) measured at the surface, results in ocean-boundary fracture widths of 20 m, although smaller 10 m widths are possible if the fractures taper significantly towards the surface (Nakajima and Ingersoll 2016; Ingersoll and Nakajima 2016).

  10. Corrected from the original 12 nm radius published in error by Postberg et al. (2006).

  11. Although some Prometheus-type plumes can reach similar heights, so it is possible that both the major volcano types on Io may produce cosmic dust.

  12. Which in turn depend on the depth of the charging region—for example, at 400 km, a grain may only spend \(\approx 10^{2}~\mbox{s}\) in a 10 km thick “charging region” at the top of its trajectory, neglecting gas interaction.

  13. We here correct the definition given in Postberg et al. (2008, 2011b), which proposed minor silicate inclusions as an alternative to the organics.

  14. This number reflects the current stage of knowledge. It is under investigation and may change in the future.

  15. These are a small subset (known by their High Mass Organic Cation, HMOC spectra) of the overall Type II grain population, which exhibit a wide range of organic concentrations.

  16. If water-ice particles this small can even form, as minimum formation sizes are estimated to be 1.3 nm, Meyer-Vernet (2013).

  17. Assuming a compact ice layer—for fluffy snow-like deposition the layer thickness will be higher.

  18. With particles up to \(10~\upmu\mbox{m}\) also possible, Ye et al. (2016).

  19. Although initially Jupiter’s Gossamer ring was postulated as a possible source, Hamilton and Burns (1993).

  20. Although partially predicted by Pang et al. (1984) and Horányi (2000).

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank H. Krüger and an anonymous referee for their helpful and constructive comments, which have improved the manuscript. JH acknowledges funding from Universität Heidelberg. The authors thank ISSI and Andrea Fischer for funding and arranging copyright permissions for many of the figures within this work.

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Correspondence to J. K. Hillier.

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Cosmic Dust from the Laboratory to the Stars

Edited by Rafael Rodrigo, Jürgen Blum, Hsiang-Wen Hsu, Detlef Koschny, Anny-Chantal Levasseur-Regourd, Jesús Martín-Pintado, Veerle Sterken and Andrew Westphal

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Hillier, J.K., Schmidt, J., Hsu, HW. et al. Dust Emission by Active Moons. Space Sci Rev 214, 131 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-018-0539-9

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