Near-Infrared Photometry of the Saturnian Satellites during Ring Plane Crossing

✍ Scribed by B.J. Buratti; J.A. Mosher; P.D. Nicholson; C.A. McGhee; R.G. French

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 326 KB
• Volume: 136
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0019-1035
• DOI: 10.1006/icar.1998.6026

✦ Synopsis

The first near-infrared (0.9 m) photometric observations of Saturn's five medium-sized satellites were obtained during the In this paper we report on the analysis of nearly 300 August 1995 ring plane crossing with Palomar Observatory's images obtained in the near infrared during the RPX of 60-in. telescope. The albedos of the satellites are very high, August 9-12, 1995 (the actual crossing was on August indicating that a very low fraction of dark opaque contaminants 10 at 20:54 UT (daylight in California), according to the is present on their icy surfaces. The geometric albedos for the Planetary Data Systems ring node at http://ringside.arc. leading sides of the satellites are Enceladus: 1.02; Tethys: 0.90; nasa.gov). These observations represent the first extensive Dione: 0.72; and Rhea: 0.76. The geometric albedo of the trailing photometric study of the inner medium-sized satellites of side of Mimas is 0.72. The amplitudes of the satellites' rotational Saturn (Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Rhea, Dione, and lightcurves are somewhat less than those measured at visible Rhea) at this wavelength. They provide important new wavelengths. They range from 0.40 (Dione) to 0.10 (Rhea) to information on the rotational lightcurves and geometric 0.05 (Tethys). Both Enceladus and Mimas are brighter on the albedos of the five satellites (see Table I for a summary trailing side, unlike the other three satellites. These results suggest that the optical properties of all five satellites are deterof their physical properties). The rotational lightcurves mined by interactions with Saturn's E-ring.