Premium
Jovian seismic waves and their detection
Author(s) -
Hunten Donald M.,
Hoffmann William F.,
Sprague Ann L.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/94gl01060
Subject(s) - radiance , geology , gravity wave , tropopause , geophysics , jovian , gravitational wave , seismic wave , comet , stratosphere , internal wave , seismology , atmospheric sciences , physics , remote sensing , astrobiology , astronomy , planet , saturn , oceanography
The impacts of the pieces of Comet Shoemaker‐Levy 9 should generate strong waves and fronts. Those that start out downward within a few degrees of vertical can travel large distances before reaching the surface again, and may probe to depths (13000 km) as great as the metallic‐hydrogen boundary. It is shown that the wave fronts should be detectable through their stratospheric heating and cooling, by imaging in the 7.8 µ m band of CH 4 , which is very temperature sensitive (radiance ∝ T 12.3 ). In addition to the “seismic” waves, the experiment should be able to detect slower‐moving ducted acoustic waves near the tropopause and still slower gravity waves.