HR: 14:40h
AN: P53E-01 INVITED    [Abstracts]
TI: Saturn's Rings Observed with Cassini-VIMS
AU: * Nicholson, P D
EM: pdn2@cornell.edu
AF: Cornell University, Space Sciences Bldg., Ithaca, NY 14853, United States
AU: Hedman, M M
EM: mmhedman@astro.cornell.edu
AF: Cornell University, Space Sciences Bldg., Ithaca, NY 14853, United States
AU: Filacchione, G
EM: gianrico.filacchione@iasf-roma.inaf.it
AF: INAF-IASF, via del Fosso del Cavaliere 100, Rome, 00133, Italy
AU: Baines, K H
EM: kbaines@aloha.jpl.nasa.gov
AF: JPL, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109, United States
AU: Brown, R H
EM: rhb@lpl.arizona.edu
AF: University of Arizona, Lunar & Planetary Lab., Tucson, AZ 85721, United States
AU: Buratti, B J
EM: bonnie.j.buratti@jpl.nasa.gov
AF: JPL, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109, United States
AU: Clark, R N
EM: rclark@usgs.gov
AF: USGS, Mail Stop 964, PO Box 25046, Denver, CO 80225, United States
AB: Since Saturn Orbit Insertion (SOI) in July 2004, the Cassini spacecraft has completed over 50 orbits around Saturn. During this time, the Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) has made numerous observations of the rings, including high-resolution multi-spectral scans covering the wavelength range from 0.35 to 5.1~μm, at various phase angles and illumination geometries; spectral imaging at both very low (<1°) and very high (>175°) phase angles; imaging the edge-on rings; and occultations by the sun and several bright stars. In this review we will concentrate on radial variations in the rings' reflectance spectrum, with implications for ice grain size and purity, and on structural features revealed by the VIMS stellar occultation data. Included in the latter are self-gravity wakes in the A and B rings, evident in azimuthal variations in the average transmission as well as in ring microstructure; several unidentified wave trains in the C ring; evidence for a bimodal optical depth distribution in the inner B ring; and anomalous dispersive effects seen in dusty regions such as the F ring and Encke Gap. This work was supported by NASA under a contract with the Cassini-Huygens Project.
DE: 5709 Composition (1060)
DE: 5759 Rings and dust
DE: 6265 Planetary rings
DE: 6275 Saturn
SC: Planetary Sciences [P]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting