Speaker
Description
We investigate the long-term variability of Jupiter’s 3-micron methane and ethane polar emissions in relation to solar wind fluxes. Our analysis is based on 3-micron emission measurements obtained with the Gemini infrared spectrograph in 2013, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022, along with solar wind fluxes propagated to Jupiter’s orbit for the same years. The goal is to examine whether yearly changes in the 3-micron polar brightening are correlated with solar wind conditions over the past solar cycle. On shorter timescales, Kim et al. (2020, Icarus 348, 113852) found no clear correlation between 3-micron brightness and solar wind flux during monthly observations in March, May, June, and July 2018 with the same instrument. We also consider the possible connection between the yearly variability of the 10-micron polar hot spot (Sinclair et al. 2023, Icarus 406, 115740) and the 3-micron emission. Our preliminary findings indicate no convincing correlation between the yearly variation of the 3-micron polar emission and solar wind fluxes during the examined period.
