Cassini RPWS Observation of Saturn’s Radio Rotation Rates After Equinox

Abstract:

Saturn’s radio rotation rate, originally thought to be constant, was found to vary with time by comparing the Voyager and Ulysses observation of Saturn kilometric radiation (SKR). Later on, Cassini RPWS observation of SKR revealed that the two hemispheres of Saturn are rotating at two different rotational periods, and it was proposed that the two periods are subject to seasonal change. The topic we would like to focus on resolving is whether the north and south rotational periods actually crossed after equinox. The almost continuous observation of SKR, Saturn narrowband emission, and auroral hiss by RPWS provide a good method of tracking the radio rotation periods of the planet. SKR power from the northern and southern hemispheres can be separated by the polarization of the radiation. Based on the evolution of SKR phase in the northern and southern hemispheres, we show that the rotation rate of the northern SKR is slower than that of the southern SKR starting from late 2014. Auroral hiss provides another unambiguous method of isolating the rotation signals from one hemisphere because the whistler mode plasma wave cannot cross the equator. Rotational modulation rates of auroral hiss are shown to agree with those of SKR during Cassini’s high inclination orbits. Hemispherical origins of the narrowband emission are not distinguishable due to its unique generation mechanism. However, Lomb-Scargle periodogram of the 5 kHz narrowband emissions indicates that the two separate radio rotation periods of Saturn’s magnetosphere reappeared after a long break since equinox.