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Determination of the heliospheric axis orientation‐An opportunity for the Cassini Mission to Saturn
Author(s) -
Mall U.,
Fichtner H.,
Hamilton D. C.,
Rucinski D.
Publication year - 1996
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 - 10.1029/96gl02927
Subject(s) - saturn , heliosphere , spacecraft , interplanetary spaceflight , cruise , orientation (vector space) , astrobiology , physics , trajectory , aerospace engineering , environmental science , astronomy , meteorology , geodesy , solar wind , geology , plasma , planet , geometry , mathematics , quantum mechanics , engineering
Pick‐up ion measurements that could be made during the interplanetary cruise of the Cassini spacecraft to Saturn offer a unique opportunity to determine the orientation of the upwind‐downwind axis of the heliosphere. The method and results of a feasibility study are presented. The study shows that pick‐up oxygen is the best candidate for such a measurement. Model computations are used to predict the actual pick‐up oxygen fluxes which instruments on the Cassini spacecraft would see along its trajectory for several currently debated upwind‐downwind axis orientations.