Saturn's hydrogen aurora: Wide field and planetary camera 2 imaging from the Hubble Space Telescope

Abstract

Wide field and planetary camera 2/Hubble Space Telescope (WFPC2/HST) images of Saturn's far ultraviolet aurora reveal emissions confined to a narrow band of latitudes near Saturn's north and south poles. The aurorae are most prominent in the morning sector with patterns that appear fixed in local time. The geographic distribution and vertical extent of the auroral emissions seen in these images provide the first new observational insights into the physical mechanisms that power Saturn's aurora since the Voyager encounters 17 years ago. Copyright 1998 by the American Geophysical Union.