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New Johns Hopkins University simulations offer an intriguing look into Saturn s interior, suggesting that a thick layer of helium rain influences the planet s magnetic field.
AGU Advances, also indicate that Saturn s interior may feature higher temperatures at the equatorial region, with lower temperatures at the high latitudes at the top of the helium rain layer.
It is notoriously difficult to study the interior structures of large gaseous planets, and the findings advance the effort to map Saturn s hidden regions. By studying how Saturn formed and how it evolved over time, we can learn a lot about the formation of other planets similar to Saturn within our own solar system, as well as beyond it, said co-author Sabine Stanley, a Johns Hopkins planetary physicist.
6 MAY 2021
Saturn really stands out among the Solar System planets, and not just because of its glorious system of rings. Its magnetic field is also peculiar; unlike other planets, with their off-axis fields, Saturn s magnetic field is almost perfectly symmetrical around its rotational axis.
This odd magnetic field, and the NASA Cassini mission that spent months swooping through it, represent a rare opportunity: to probe the interior of a gas giant, usually so difficult to peer into. Now, a new analysis of Cassini data has shown what might be happening inside Saturn to produce this strange magnetosphere.
This, in turn, can help us understand how Saturn came to be the way it is.
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Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University have completed a new model of Saturn’s interior, which hints at a thick layer of helium rain that modulates the gas giant’s magnetic field.
Saturn’s interior with stably stratified Helium Insoluble Layer (HIL). Image credits Yi Zheng (HEMI/MICA Extreme Arts Program) / Johns Hopkins University.
The so-called ‘gas giants’ are notoriously hard to peer into, and they remain some of the most mysterious planets out there. Given the extreme environments they represent, it’s likely going to be a while before this changes, and an even longer while before any astronauts can actually go see for themselves.
Explican campo magnético de Saturno elperiodico.com.gt - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from elperiodico.com.gt Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Credit: Ankit Barik/Johns Hopkins University
New Johns Hopkins University simulations offer an intriguing look into Saturn s interior, suggesting that a thick layer of helium rain influences the planet s magnetic field.
The models, published this week in
AGU Advances, also indicate that Saturn s interior may feature higher temperatures at the equatorial region, with lower temperatures at the high latitudes at the top of the helium rain layer.
It is notoriously difficult to study the interior structures of large gaseous planets, and the findings advance the effort to map Saturn s hidden regions. By studying how Saturn formed and how it evolved over time, we can learn a lot about the formation of other planets similar to Saturn within our own solar system, as well as beyond it, said co-author Sabine Stanley, a Johns Hopkins planetary physicist.