Comparison of the thermal and nonthermal radiation characteristics of Jupiter at 6, 11, and 21 cm with model calculations

Four different data sets on Jupiter, one at 6, one at 11, and two at 21 cm, are compared to each other and with the synchrotron radiation model of the magnetosphere developed by I. de Pater (1981, J. Geophys. Res., 86, 3397–3422, 3423–3429). The model agrees with all these data sets, and hence was used to derive and interpret the characteristics of the thermal radiation component at all three wavelengths. The disk temperatures are 233 ± 17, 280 ±20, and 340 ± 26°K at 6, 11, and 21 cm, respectively. A comparison of the data with atmospheric model calculations strongly suggests that the disk is uniform at λ6 and λ11 cm near the center of the disk, where μ > 0.6?0.7. This may indicate a nonuniform distribution of ammonia at layers at and above the visible cloud layers.