Detection of the infrared aurora at Uranus with Keck-NIRSPEC

Emma M. Thomas; Henrik Melin; Tom S. Stallard; Mohammad N. Chowdhury; Ruoyan Wang; Katie Knowles; Steve Miller

doi:10.1038/s41550-023-02096-5

Detection of the infrared aurora at Uranus with Keck-NIRSPEC

Emma M. Thomas^*, Henrik Melin, Tom S. Stallard, Mohammad N. Chowdhury, Ruoyan Wang, Katie Knowles, Steve Miller

^*Corresponding author for this work

Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering

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Abstract

Near-infrared (NIR)-wavelength observations of Uranus have been unable to locate any infrared aurorae, despite many attempts to do so since the 1990s. While at Jupiter and Saturn, NIR investigations have redefined our understanding of magnetosphere–ionosphere–thermosphere coupling, the lack of NIR auroral detection at Uranus means that we have lacked a window through which to study these processes at Uranus. Here we present NIR Uranian observations with the Keck II telescope taken on the 5 September 2006 and detect enhanced H3+ emissions. Analysing temperatures and column densities, we identify an 88% increase in localized H3+ column density, with no significant temperature increases, consistent with auroral activity generating increased ionization. By comparing these structures against the Q3mp magnetic-field model and the Voyager 2 ultraviolet observations, we suggest that these regions make up sections of the northern aurora.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1473-1480
Number of pages	10
Journal	Nature Astronomy
Volume	7
Issue number	12
Early online date	23 Oct 2023
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-023-02096-5
Publication status	Published - 1 Dec 2023

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title = "Detection of the infrared aurora at Uranus with Keck-NIRSPEC",

abstract = "Near-infrared (NIR)-wavelength observations of Uranus have been unable to locate any infrared aurorae, despite many attempts to do so since the 1990s. While at Jupiter and Saturn, NIR investigations have redefined our understanding of magnetosphere–ionosphere–thermosphere coupling, the lack of NIR auroral detection at Uranus means that we have lacked a window through which to study these processes at Uranus. Here we present NIR Uranian observations with the Keck II telescope taken on the 5 September 2006 and detect enhanced H3+ emissions. Analysing temperatures and column densities, we identify an 88% increase in localized H3+ column density, with no significant temperature increases, consistent with auroral activity generating increased ionization. By comparing these structures against the Q3mp magnetic-field model and the Voyager 2 ultraviolet observations, we suggest that these regions make up sections of the northern aurora.",

author = "Thomas, {Emma M.} and Henrik Melin and Stallard, {Tom S.} and Chowdhury, {Mohammad N.} and Ruoyan Wang and Katie Knowles and Steve Miller",

note = "Funding information: The UK STFC studentships ST/T506242/1 and ST/N504117/1 supported the work of E.M.T. and M.N.C., respectively. The STFC James Webb Fellowship (ST/W001527/1) at the University of Leicester, UK supported H.M., and the UK STFC Consolidated Grant ST/N000749/1 supported T.S.S. The data presented herein were obtained at the W. M. Keck Observatory, which is operated as a scientific partnership among the California Institute of Technology, the University of California and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The observatory was made possible by the generous financial support of the W. M. Keck Foundation. The authors are indebted to Mark Showalter for their assistance with Fig. 1 of this article. The authors recognize and acknowledge the very significant cultural role and reverence that the summit of Maunakea has always had within the Indigenous Hawaiian community. We are most fortunate to have the opportunity to conduct observations from this mountain.",

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AU - Knowles, Katie

AU - Miller, Steve

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Detection of the infrared aurora at Uranus with Keck-NIRSPEC

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