On the gravitational signature of zonal flows in Jupiter-like planets: An analytical solution and its numerical validation
Kong, D; Zhang, K; Schubert, G
Date: 2 December 2016
Journal
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors
Publisher
Elsevier
Publisher DOI
Abstract
In late 2016, the Juno spacecraft will provide an accurate spectrum of the Jovian
zonal gravitational coefficients that would be affected by both the deep zonal flow,
if it exists, and the basic rotational distortion. We derive the first analytical solution,
under the spheroidal-shape approximation, for the density anomaly induced
by ...
In late 2016, the Juno spacecraft will provide an accurate spectrum of the Jovian
zonal gravitational coefficients that would be affected by both the deep zonal flow,
if it exists, and the basic rotational distortion. We derive the first analytical solution,
under the spheroidal-shape approximation, for the density anomaly induced
by an internal zonal flow in rapidly rotating Jupiter-like planets. We compare the
density anomaly of the analytical solution to that obtained from a fully numerical
solution based on a three-dimensional finite element method; the two show excellent
agreement. We apply the analytical solution to a rapidly rotating Jupiter-like planet
and show that there exists a close relationship between the spatial structure of the
zonal flow and the spectrum of zonal gravitational coefficients. We check the accuracy
of the spheroidal-shape approximation by computing both the spheroidal and
non-spheroidal solutions with exactly the same physical parameters. We also discuss
implications of the new analytical solution for interpreting the future high-precision
gravitational measurements of the Juno spacecraft.
Mathematics and Statistics
Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy
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