Brightness power spectral distribution and waves in Jupiter's upper cloud and hazes

In this work we analyze the spatial structure of Jupiter's cloud reflectivity field in order to determine brightness periodicities and power spectra characteristics together with their relationship with Jupiter's dynamics and turbulence. The research is based on images obtained in the near-infrared (∼950 nm), blue (∼430 nm) and near-ultraviolet (∼260 nm) wavelengths with the Hubble Space Telescope in 1995 and the Cassini spacecraft Imaging Science Subsystem in 2000. Zonal reflectivity scans were analyzed by means of spatial periodograms and power spectra. The periodograms have been used to search for waves as a function of latitude. We present the values of the dominant wavenumbers for latitude bands between 32° N and 42° S. The brightness power spectra analysis has been performed in the meridional and zonal directions. The meridional analysis of albedo profiles are close to a k⁻⁵ law similarly to the wind profiles at blue and infrared wavelengths, although results differ from that in the ultraviolet. The zonal albedo analysis results in two distributions characterized by different slopes. In the near infrared and blue wavelengths, average spectral slopes are n₁=−1.3±0.4 for shorter wavenumbers (k<80), and n₂=−2.5±0.7 for greater wavenumbers, whereas for the ultraviolet n₁=−1.9±0.4 and n₂=−0.7±0.4, possibly showing a different dynamical regime. We find a turning point in the spectra between both regimes at wavenumber k∼80 (corresponding to L∼1000 km) for all wavelengths.     

Buoyancy waves in Pluto’s high atmosphere: Implications for stellar occultations

We apply scintillation theory to stellar signal fluctuations in the high-resolution, high signal/noise, dual-wavelength data from the MMT observation of the 2007 March 18 occultation of P445.3 by Pluto. A well-defined high wavenumber cutoff in the fluctuations is consistent with viscous-thermal dissipation of buoyancy waves (internal gravity waves) in Pluto’s high atmosphere, and provides strong evidence that the underlying density fluctuations are governed by the gravity-wave dispersion relation.     

Recent orbital evolution and the internal structures of Enceladus and Dione

We study the orbital behavior of Saturn’s satellites Enceladus and Dione during their passage through the 2:1 mean-motion resonances to constrain their interior structures, parameterized by the quantity k₂/Q (assumed constant). Enceladus’ evolution after escape from the second-order e-Enceladus e-Dione resonance requires that (k₂/Q)_Enceladus<8×10^-4, for that Q_Saturn>18,000. This result is in agreement with [Meyer, J., Wisdom, J., 2008b. Icarus 193, 213-223]. The present-day libration amplitude of Enceladus requires that (k₂/Q)_Enceladus>1.2×10^-4, assuming that Q_Saturn<10⁵. Dione’s present-day eccentricity indicates that (k₂/Q)_Dione?3×10^-4 for Q_Saturn>18,000. Assuming Maxwellian viscoelastic behavior, we find that for Enceladus a convective ice shell overlying an ocean is too dissipative to match the orbital constraints. We conclude that a conductive shell overlying an ocean is more likely, and discuss the implications of this result. Dione’s ice shell is also likely to be conductive, but our results are less constraining.     

A heat engine based moist convection parametrization for Jupiter

We have developed a parametrization of Jovian moist convection based on a heat engine model of moist convection. In comparison to other moist convection schemes, this framework allows the computation of the total available convective energy TCAPE and the corresponding mass flux M as dynamic variables from the mean atmospheric state. The effects of this parametrization have been investigated both analytically and numerically. In agreement with previous numerical experiments and observations, the inclusion of moist convection leads to heat and water vapor transport from the water condensation level into higher altitudes. The time development of the modeled convective events was found to be strongly influenced by a rapid reduction of kinetic energy and a subsequent lowering of the cumulus tower's top in response to convective heating. We have tested the sensitivity of the scheme to different variations in the fractional cloud coverage and under the inclusion of external radiative forcing towards a stable/unstable temperature profile. While the time development of convective events differs in response to these variations, the general moist convective heating and moistening of the upper troposphere was a robust feature observed in all experiments.     

N-body simulations for testing the stability of triaxial galaxies in MOND

We perform a stability test of triaxial models in Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND) using N -body simulations. The triaxial models considered here have densities that vary with   r ⁻¹  in the centre and   r ⁻⁴  at large radii. The total mass of the model varies from 10⁸ to  10¹⁰ M_⊙  , representing the mass scale of dwarfs to medium-mass elliptical galaxies, respectively, from deep MOND to quasi-Newtonian gravity. We build triaxial galaxy models using the Schwarzschild technique, and evolve the systems for 200 Keplerian dynamical times (at the typical length-scale of 1.0 kpc). We find that the systems are virial overheating, and in quasi-equilibrium with the relaxation taking approximately 5 Keplerian dynamical times (1.0 kpc). For all systems, the change of the inertial (kinetic) energy is less than 10 per cent (20 per cent) after relaxation. However, the central profile of the model is flattened during the relaxation and the (overall) axis ratios change by roughly 10 per cent within 200 Keplerian dynamical times (at 1.0 kpc) in our simulations. We further find that the systems are stable once they reach the equilibrium state.     

On the dissolution of star clusters in the Galactic Centre – I. Circular orbits

We present N -body simulations of dissolving star clusters close to Galactic Centres. For this purpose, we developed a new N -body program called nbody6gc based on Aarseth's series of N -body codes. We describe the algorithm in detail. We report about the density wave phenomenon in the tidal arms which has been recently explained by Küpper, Macleod & Heggie. Standing waves develop in the tidal arms. The wave knots or clumps develop at the position, where the emerging tidal arm hits the potential wall of the effective potential and is reflected. The escaping stars move through the wave knots further into the tidal arms. We show the consistency of the positions of the wave knots with the theory in Just et al. We also demonstrate a simple method to study the properties of tidal arms. By solving many eigenvalue problems along the tidal arms, we numerically construct a one-dimensional coordinate system whose direction is always along a principal axis of the local tensor of inertia. Along this coordinate system, physical quantities can be evaluated. The half-mass or dissolution times of our models are almost independent of the particle number which indicates that two-body relaxation is not the dominant mechanism leading to the dissolution. This may be a typical situation for many young star clusters. We propose a classification scheme which sheds light on the dissolution mechanism.     

The gravitational wave background from star–massive black hole fly-bys

Stars on eccentric orbits around a massive black hole (MBH) emit bursts of gravitational waves (GWs) at periapse. Such events may be directly resolvable in the Galactic Centre. However, if the star does not spiral in, the emitted GWs are not resolvable for extragalactic MBHs, but constitute a source of background noise. We estimate the power spectrum of this extreme mass ratio burst background (EMBB) and compare it to the anticipated instrumental noise of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). To this end, we model the regions close to an MBH, accounting for mass segregation, and for processes that limit the presence of stars close to the MBH, such as GW inspiral and hydrodynamical collisions between stars. We find that the EMBB is dominated by GW bursts from stellar mass black holes, and the magnitude of the noise spectrum  ( fS _GW)^1/2  is at least a factor of ∼10 smaller than the instrumental noise. As an additional result of our analysis, we show that LISA is unlikely to detect relativistic bursts in the Galactic Centre.