The 15 August 1980 occultation by the Uranian system: Structure of the rings and temperature of the upper atmosphere

Abstract

A stellar occultation by Uranus and its rings was observed on August 15, 1980, from the European Southern Observatory (Chile), at the 3.6-m telescope equipped with an infrared (2.2 μm) photometer. The recording presents the best signal-to-noise ratio obtained since the discovery of the Uranian rings in March 1977. The nine rings were observed, and the profiles of rings α, β, and ϵ were resolved, the ring α exhibiting a double structure. Strong diffraction peaks are visible in the γ ring profile suggesting an opaque ring with very sharp edges. A broad and faint structure extends outward from the η ring, on a radial scale of about 55 km. Apart from the ring occultations, unexplained sharp and deep events were recorded, and no interpretation is possible until future observations are made. Furthermore, the stellar light curve during the immersion of the star behind the planet provides (via an inversion computation) the temperature profile of the upper atmosphere of Uranus. The temperature is close to 145 ± 10°K at the 3 × 10 −2-mbar pressure level and is nearly constant (155 ± 15°K) in the pressure interval from 10 −2 to 10 −3 mbar. The thermal inversion is as strong as the inversion on Neptune but is located at higher altitudes. This high stratospheric temperature is consistent with the upper limit of the brightness temperature at 8 μm only if CH 4 follows its saturation law.