Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Fig. 11. Light curve of X-rays from Saturn and the Sun on January 20, 2004. All
data are binned in 30 min increments, except for the TIMED/SEE data, which are
3 min observation-averaged fluxes obtained every orbit (
12 measurements per day).
(a) Background-subtracted low-latitude (non-auroral) Saturn disk X-rays (0.24-2.0 keV)
observed by Chandra ACIS, plotted in black (after shifting by
∼
2
.
236 h to account for
the light-travel time difference between Sun-Saturn-Earth and Sun-Earth). The solar
0.2-2.5 keV fluxes measured by TIMED/SEE are denoted by open circles and are joined
by the dashed line for visualization purpose. (b) Solar X-ray flux in the 1.6-12.4 and
3.1-24.8 keV bands measured by the Earth-orbiting GOES-12 satellite. A sharp peak in
the light curve of Saturn's disk X-ray flux — an X-ray flare — is observed at about
7.5 h, which corresponds in time and magnitude with an X-ray solar flare. In addition,
the temporal variation in Saturn's disk X-ray flux during the time period prior to the
flare is similar to that seen in the solar X-ray flux [see Ref. 41 for details].
−
Comparison of Chandra ACIS-S X-ray Spectrum of Satun and Jupiter Disk
0.05
Saturn, Jan. 20, 2004
Jupiter, Feb. 24, 2003
0.04
0.03
0.02
0.01
0.00
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.4
1.5
Energy (keV)
Fig. 12. Disk X-ray spectrum of Jupiter and Saturn. Values for Saturn spectrum are
plotted after multiplying by a factor of 5.
