Dennis L. Matson

Non‐water‐ice constituents in the surface material of the icy Galilean satellites from the Galileo near‐infrared mapping spectrometer investigation

We present evidence for several non-ice constituents in the surface material of the icy Galilean satellites, using the reflectance spectra returned by the Galileo near infrared mapping spectrometer (NIMS) experiment. Five new absorption features are described at 3.4, 3.88, 4.05, 4.25, and 4.57 μm for Callisto and Ganymede, and some seem to exist for Europa as well. The four absorption bands strong enough to be mapped on Callisto and Ganymede are each spatially distributed in different ways, indicating different materials are responsible for each absorption. The spatial distributions are correlated at the local level in complex ways with surface features and in some cases show global patterns. Suggested candidate spectrally active groups, perhaps within larger molecules, producing the five absorptions include C-H, S-H, SO2, CO2, and C≡N. Organic material like tholins are candidates for the 4.57- and 3.4-μm features. We suggest, based on spectroscopic evidence, that CO2 is present as a form which does not allow rotational modes and that SO2 is present neither as a frost nor a free gas. The CO2, SO2, and perhaps cyanogen (4.57 μm) may be present as very small collections of molecules within the crystal structure, perhaps following models for radiation damage and/or for comet and interstellar grain formation at low temperatures. Some of the dark material on these surfaces may be created by radiation damage of the CO2 and other carbon-bearing species and the formation of graphite. These spectra suggest a complex chemistry within the surface materials and an important role for non-ice materials in the evolution of the satellite surfaces.

Discovery of a Powerful, Transient, Explosive Thermal Event at Marduk Fluctus, Io, in Galileo NIMS data

Analysis of Galileo Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (NIMS) observations of Marduk Fluctus, a volcano on the jovian moon Io, reveals a style of volcanic activity not previously seen there – a powerful thermal event lasting only a few minutes in 1997. The thermal emission rapidly fades, suggesting extremely rapid cooling of small clasts. The duration and evolution of the explosive eruption is akin to what might be expected from a strombolian or vulcanian explosion. The presence of such events provides an additional volcanic process that can be imaged by future missions with the intent of determining lava composition from eruption temperature, an important constraint on the internal composition of Io. These data promise to be of particular use in understanding the mechanics of explosive volcanic processes on Io.

Spectral properties of icy saturnian satellites derived from cassini data

Cassinis Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) offers the first spatially resolved hyperspectral data of the Saturnian satellites [1] allowing a detailed comparison of their spectral properties including their spatial distribution across the satellites surface. Additionally, images acquired by the Cassini ISS cameras [2] offer the opportunity to study any relationships between the spectral variations to geological and morphological surface features. This is essential to understand the origin of the major and especially minor surface compounds and/or their physical properties. Either, the derived spectral variations are closely related to the surface geology of the specific satellite, or they can be explained by the interaction of the surface material and the space environment (including the planets magnetosphere). Thus, the analysis of the icy satellites spectral properties not only further our understanding of the icy satellites evolution but also complete our view about the whole planetary system.