Simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope Research Articles

An Enhancement of Jupiter's Main Auroral Emission and Magnetospheric Currents

AbstractWe present observations of Jupiter's magnetic field and plasma obtained with the NASA Juno spacecraft during February 2018, along with simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of the planet's auroras. We show that a few‐day transient enhancement of the azimuthal and radial magnetic fields and plasma temperature was coincident with a significant brightening of Jupiter's dawn‐side main auroral emission. This presents the first evidence of control of Jupiter's main auroral emission intensity by magnetosphere‐ionosphere coupling currents. We support this association by self‐consistent calculation of the magnetosphere‐ionosphere coupling and radial force balance currents using an axisymmetric model, which broadly reproduces the Juno magnetic field and plasma observations and the HST auroral observations. We show that the transient enhancement can be explained by increased hot plasma pressure in the magnetosphere together with increased iogenic plasma mass outflow rate. Overall, this work provides important observational and modeling evidence revealing the behavior of Jupiter's giant magnetosphere.

Jovian Auroral Radio Sources Detected In Situ by Juno/Waves: Comparisons With Model Auroral Ovals and Simultaneous HST FUV Images

AbstractSince the discovery of Jovian auroral radio emissions, the question arises of the source positions of the different components (broadband kilometric, hectometric, and decametric) and their association with far ultraviolet (FUV) auroral emissions. We surveyed Juno's first 15 perijoves to track local radio sources from in situ Juno/Waves measurements (50 Hz to 40 MHz). This allowed us to study the 3‐D spatial distribution of the broadband kilometric, hectometric, and decametric radio sources. These sources are carried by the same magnetic field lines, with the bulk of them at apex M ranging from 15 to 60 (distance measured in RJ at the magnetic equator). Finally, comparisons with images of the Jovian FUV aurorae simultaneously acquired by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) reveal a partial spatial colocation of the FUV main oval emission with the identified local radio sources.

Swift UVOT Grism Observations of Nearby Type Ia Supernovae – I. Observations and Data Reduction

Ultraviolet (UV) observations of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are useful tools for understanding progenitor systems and explosion physics. In particular, UV spectra of SNe Ia, which probe the outermost layers, are strongly affected by the progenitor metallicity. In this work, we present 120 Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory UV spectra of 39 nearby SNe Ia. This sample is the largest UV (lambda < 2900 A) spectroscopic sample of SNe Ia to date, doubling the number of UV spectra and tripling the number of SNe with UV spectra. The sample spans nearly the full range of SN Ia light-curve shapes (delta m(B) ~ 0.6-1.8 mag). The fast turnaround of Swift allows us to obtain UV spectra at very early times, with 13 out of 39 SNe having their first spectra observed >~ 1 week before peak brightness and the earliest epoch being 16.5 days before peak brightness. The slitless design of the Swift UV grism complicates the data reduction, which requires separating SN light from underlying host-galaxy light and occasional overlapping stellar light. We present a new data-reduction procedure to mitigate these issues, producing spectra that are significantly improved over those of standard methods. For a subset of the spectra we have nearly simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope UV spectra; the Swift spectra are consistent with these comparison data.

Simultaneous Multiwavelength Variability Characterization of the Free-floating Planetary-mass Object PSO J318.5−22

Abstract We present simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope (HST) WFC3+Spitzer IRAC variability monitoring for the highly variable young (∼20 Myr) planetary-mass object PSO J318.5−22. Our simultaneous HST + Spitzer observations covered approximately two rotation periods with Spitzer and most of a rotation period with the HST. We derive a period of 8.6 ± 0.1 hr from the Spitzer light curve. Combining this period with the measured for this object, we find an inclination of 56.°2 ± 8.°1. We measure peak-to-trough variability amplitudes of 3.4% ± 0.1% for Spitzer Channel 2 and 4.4%–5.8% (typical 68% confidence errors of ∼0.3%) in the near-IR bands (1.07–1.67 μm) covered by the WFC3 G141 prism—the mid-IR variability amplitude for PSO J318.5−22 is one of the highest variability amplitudes measured in the mid-IR for any brown dwarf or planetary-mass object. Additionally, we detect phase offsets ranging from 200° to 210° (typical error of ∼4°) between synthesized near-IR light curves and the Spitzer mid-IR light curve, likely indicating depth-dependent longitudinal atmospheric structure in this atmosphere. The detection of similar variability amplitudes in wide spectral bands relative to absorption features suggests that the driver of the variability may be inhomogeneous clouds (perhaps a patchy haze layer over thick clouds), as opposed to hot spots or compositional inhomogeneities at the top-of-atmosphere level.

Transient brightening of Jupiter's aurora observed by the Hisaki satellite and Hubble Space Telescope during approach phase of the Juno spacecraft

AbstractIn early 2014, continuous monitoring with the Hisaki satellite discovered transient auroral emission at Jupiter during a period when the solar wind was relatively quiet for a few days. Simultaneous imaging made by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) suggested that the transient aurora is associated with a global magnetospheric disturbance that spans from the inner to outer magnetosphere. However, the temporal and spatial evolutions of the magnetospheric disturbance were not resolved because of the lack of continuous monitoring of the transient aurora simultaneously with the imaging. Here we report the coordinated observation of the aurora and plasma torus made by Hisaki and HST during the approach phase of the Juno spacecraft in mid‐2016. On day 142, Hisaki detected a transient aurora with a maximum total H2 emission power of ~8.5 TW. The simultaneous HST imaging was indicative of a large “dawn storm,” which is associated with tail reconnection, at the onset of the transient aurora. The outer emission, which is associated with hot plasma injection in the inner magnetosphere, followed the dawn storm within less than two Jupiter rotations. The monitoring of the torus with Hisaki indicated that the hot plasma population increased in the torus during the transient aurora. These results imply that the magnetospheric disturbance is initiated via the tail reconnection and rapidly expands toward the inner magnetosphere, followed by the hot plasma injection reaching the plasma torus. This corresponds to the radially inward transport of the plasma and/or energy from the outer to the inner magnetosphere.

SPACE TELESCOPE AND OPTICAL REVERBERATION MAPPING PROJECT.VI. REVERBERATING DISK MODELS FOR NGC 5548

ABSTRACT We conduct a multiwavelength continuum variability study of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 5548 to investigate the temperature structure of its accretion disk. The 19 overlapping continuum light curves ( to ) combine simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope, Swift, and ground-based observations over a 180 day period from 2014 January to July. Light-curve variability is interpreted as the reverberation response of the accretion disk to irradiation by a central time-varying point source. Our model yields the disk inclination , temperature K at 1 light day from the black hole, and a temperature–radius slope ( ) of . We also infer the driving light curve and find that it correlates poorly with both the hard and soft X-ray light curves, suggesting that the X-rays alone may not drive the ultraviolet and optical variability over the observing period. We also decompose the light curves into bright, faint, and mean accretion-disk spectra. These spectra lie below that expected for a standard blackbody accretion disk accreting at .

OPTICAL EMISSION OF THE ULTRALUMINOUS X-RAY SOURCE NGC 5408 X-1: DONOR STAR OR IRRADIATED ACCRETION DISK?

We obtained 3 epochs of simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/Wide Field Camera 3 and Chandra observations of the ultraluminous X-ray source NGC 5408 X-1. The counterpart of the X-ray source is seen in all HST filters, from the UV through the NIR, and for the first time, we resolve the optical nebula around the ULX. We identified a small OB association near the ULX that may be the birthplace of the system. The stellar association is young, ~ 5 Myr, contains massive stars up to 40 solar masses, and is thus similar to associations seen near other ULXs, albeit younger. The UV/Optical/NIR spectral energy distribution (SED) of the ULX counterpart is consistent with that of a B0I supergiant star. We are also able to fit the whole SED from the X-rays to the NIR with an irradiated disk model. The three epochs of data show only marginal variability and thus, we cannot firmly conclude on the nature of the optical emission.

Magnetospheric mapping of the dayside UV auroral oval at Saturn using simultaneous HST images, Cassini IMF data, and a global magnetic field model

Abstract. We determine the field-aligned mapping of Saturn's auroras into the magnetosphere by combining UV images of the southern dayside oval obtained by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) with a global model of the magnetospheric magnetic field. The model is tailored to simulate prevailing conditions in the interplanetary medium, corresponding to high solar wind dynamic pressure and variable interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) strength and direction determined from suitably lagged field data observed just upstream of Saturn's dayside bow shock by the Cassini spacecraft. Two out of four images obtained in February 2008 when such simultaneous data are available are examined in detail, exemplifying conditions for northward and southward IMF. The model field structure in the outer magnetosphere and tail is found to be very different in these cases. Nevertheless, the dayside UV oval is found to have a consistent location relative to the field structure in each case. The poleward boundary of the oval is located close to the open-closed field boundary and thus maps to the vicinity of the magnetopause, consistent with previous results. The equatorward boundary of the oval then maps typically near the outer boundary of the equatorial ring current appropriate to the compressed conditions prevailing. Similar results are also found for related images from the January 2004 HST data set. These new results thus show that the mapped dayside UV oval typically spans the outer magnetosphere between the outer part of the ring current and the magnetopause. It does not encompass the region of primary corotation flow breakdown within the inner Enceladus torus.

Equatorward diffuse auroral emissions at Jupiter: Simultaneous HST and Galileo observations

We study the auroral emissions equatorward of the main oval based on Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of both Jovian hemispheres on September 20, 1997. On the same day, Galileo observed changes in the electron pitch angle distribution between the inner and middle magnetosphere (PAD boundary), indicative of electron diffusion. This region, magnetically maps to the equatorward diffuse emissions on both hemispheres. Whistler mode waves, observed simultaneously, can scatter electrons into the loss cone and lead to electron precipitation in the ionosphere. Based on simultaneous HST FUV and Galileo wave and electron data we test the conditions for electron scattering by whistler mode waves and derive the energy flux precipitated in the ionosphere. The comparison of the derived precipitation energy flux with the observed auroral brightness indicates that the energy contained in the PAD boundary can account for the auroral emissions.

Multiwavelength Monitoring of the Dwarf Seyfert 1 Galaxy NGC 4395. III. Optical Variability and X‐Ray/UV/Optical Correlations

We present optical observations of the low-luminosity Seyfert 1 nucleus of NGC 4395, as part of a multiwavelength reverberation-mapping program. Observations were carried out over two nights in 2004 April at Lick, Wise, and Kitt Peak Observatories. We obtained V- and B-band photometry, and spectra over the range 3500-6800 Å. Simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope UV and Chandra X-ray observations are presented in companion papers. Even though NGC 4395 was in an extremely low state of activity, we detect significant continuum variability of 2%-10%, increasing toward shorter wavelengths. The continuum light curves, both spectroscopic and photometric, are qualitatively similar to the simultaneous UV and X-ray light curves. Interband cross-correlations suggest that the optical continuum emission lags behind the UV continuum emission by 24 minutes, and that the optical continuum emission lags behind the X-ray continuum emission by 44 ± 13 minutes, consistent with a reprocessing model for active galactic nucleus emission. There are also hints of Balmer emission lines lagging behind the optical continuum by an amount slightly larger than the emission-line lag detected in the UV. These results are all similar to those of other Seyfert 1 nuclei. The emission-line lag yields a mass measurement of the central black hole, which although not very significant, is consistent with the value derived from the simultaneous UV data.

Multiwavelength Monitoring of the Dwarf Seyfert 1 Galaxy NGC 4395. II. X‐Ray and Ultraviolet Continuum Variability

We report on two Chandra observations, and a simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet observation, of the dwarf Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4395. Each Chandra observation had a duration of ~30 ks, with a separation of ~50 ks. The spectrum was observed to harden between these observations via a scaling down of the soft-band flux. The inter-observation variability is in a different sense to the observed variability within each observation and is most likely the result of increased absorption. Spectral variations were seen during the first observation suggesting that the X-ray emission is produced in more than one disconnected region. We have also re-analyzed a ~17 ks Chandra observation conducted in 2000. During the three Chandra observations the 2-10 keV flux is about a factor of 2 lower than seen during an XMM-Newton observation conducted in 2003. Moreover, the fractional variability amplitude exhibited during the XMM-Newton observation is significantly softer than seen during the Chandra observations. A power-spectral analysis of the first of the two new Chandra observations revealed a peak at 341s with a formal detection significance of 99%. A similar peak was seen previously in the 2000 Chandra data. However, the detection of this feature is tentative given that it was found in neither the second of our two new Chandra observations nor the XMM-Newton data, and it is much narrower than expected. The Hubble Space Telescope observation was conducted during part of the second Chandra visit. A zero-lag correlation between the ultraviolet and X-ray fluxes was detected with a significance of about 99.5%, consistent with the predictions of the two-phase model for the X-ray emission from active galactic nuclei.

Proposed model for Saturn's auroral response to the solar wind: Centrifugal instability model

We present a model of Saturn's global auroral response to the solar wind as observed by simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope (HST) auroral images and Cassini upstream measurements of the solar wind taken during the month of January 2004. These observations show a direct correlation between solar wind dynamic pressure and (1) auroral brightening toward dawn local time, (2) an increase of rotational movement of auroral features to as much as 75% of the corotation speed, (3) the movement of the auroral oval to higher latitudes, and (4) an increase in the intensity of Saturn Kilometric Radiation (SKR). Our model, referred to as the centrifugal instability model, provides an alternative to the reconnection model of Cowley et al. (2004a, 2004b, 2005); we suggest the above observations result from Saturn's magnetosphere being a fast rotator. Since the torques on Saturn's outer magnetosphere are relatively low, its outer magnetosphere will tend to conserve angular momentum. When compressed on the dayside, the outer magnetosphere spins up to higher angular velocities, and when it expands, the outer magnetosphere spins down to lower angular velocities. This response occurs since Saturn's ionosphere is unable to enforce corotation. The outer boundary of the plasma sheet at L ∼ 15 is identified as the primary source location for the auroral precipitating particles. Enhanced wave activity, which can precipitate the auroral producing particles, may be present at this boundary. If radial transport is dominated by centrifugally driven flux tube interchange motions, when the magnetosphere spins up, outward transport will increase, and the precipitating particles will move radially outward (since the radial gradient in electron energy flux is negative). This mechanism will cause the auroral oval to move to higher latitudes as observed. The Kelvin‐Helmholtz instability may contribute to the enhanced emission along the dawn meridian, as observed by HST, via enhanced wave activity and corresponding charged particle precipitation.

Signature of Saturn's auroral cusp: Simultaneous Hubble Space Telescope FUV observations and upstream solar wind monitoring

Model simulations by Bunce et al. (2005a) have shown that direct precipitation of electrons in Saturn's dayside cusp regions is not capable of producing significant FUV aurora. Instead, they suggested the possibility that the FUV bright emissions sometimes observed near noon are associated with reconnection occurring at the dayside magnetopause, possibly pulsed, analogous to flux transfer events seen at the Earth. Pulsed reconnection at the low‐latitude dayside magnetopause when the IMF is directed northward (antiparallel to Saturn's magnetic field lines) is expected to give rise to pulsed twin‐vortical flows in the magnetosphere and hence to bipolar field‐aligned currents centered in the vortical flows closing in ionospheric Pedersen current. In the case of southward IMF and high‐latitude lobe reconnection the model predicts that the vortical flows are displaced poleward of the open‐closed field line boundary with reversed field‐aligned currents compared with the former case. During January 2004, a unique campaign took place during which magnetic field and plasma instruments on board the Cassini‐Huygens spacecraft measured the in situ solar wind and embedded interplanetary magnetic field while the Hubble Space Telescope simultaneously observed the far ultraviolet aurora in Saturn's southern hemisphere. The IMF was highly structured during this interval. The electric potential at Cassini is estimated from solar wind magnetic field and velocity measurements for the case of low‐latitude or lobe reconnection. We show that a dayside FUV signature of intense electron precipitation is found poleward of or along the main oval during a period of minor compression period when the dayside reconnection voltage is estimated to be ∼30–100 kV. Overall, we find that the conceptual model of Bunce et al. (2005a) provides a good estimate of the UV brightness and power for the case of northward IMF but somewhat underestimates the power for the southward IMF case, except if the speed of the vortical flow is larger than its value in the nominal model.