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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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The nature of Earth-Jupiter-Earth trajectories that can flyby close to Europa is described and details of opportunities with launches from 2000 through 2003 are presented.
The Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer performed spectral studies of Jupiter and the Galilean satellites during the June 1996 perijove pass of the Galileo spacecraft.
The Galileo mission includes an Io flyby, insertion in Jupiter orbit, and ten close satellite flybys at altitudes as low as 250 km. The required orbit determination and navigation are described.
Galileo infrared observaitons of Jupiter have been perfomed with two instruments, the Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (NIMS) and the Photo-Polarimeter Radiometer (PPR).
Project Galileo is ecstatic to report that as of December 7, 1995, there are seventeen known satellites of Jupiter--the seventeenth being the first artificial satellite--the Galileo Orbiter!
In 1996 during the first four orbits of the satellite tour the Galileo ultraviolet spectrometer (UVS) (1130-4320 A) and extreme ultraviolet spectrometer (EUVS)(540-1280 A) performed near-simultaneous observations of the Jupiter aurora in both the north and south polar regions.
In 1996 and 1997 the Galileo Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) obtained the first measurements of Jupiter's nightside midultraviolet (MUV) polar auroral spectrum from 1620 to 3231 A at 13 A resolution.
Transit events of extrasolar planets offer a wealth of information for planetary characterization. However, for many known targets, the uncertainty of their predicted transit windows prohibits an accurate scheduling of follow-up observations. In this work, we refine the ephemerides of 21 hot Jupiter exoplanets with the largest timing uncertainties. We collected 120 professional and amateur transit light curves of the targets of interest, observed with a range of telescopes of 0.3 m–2.2 m, and analyzed them along with the timing information of the planets discovery papers. In the case of WASP-117b, we measured a timing deviation compared to the known ephemeris of about 3.5 h, and for HAT-P-29b and HAT-P-31bthe deviation amounted to about 2 h and more. For all targets, the new ephemeris predicts transit timings with uncertainties of less than 6 min in the year 2018 and less than 13 min until 2025. Thus, our results allow for an accurate scheduling of follow-up observations in the next decade.
Juno satellite observations have illustrated substantial examples of broadband electron energization up to 10 5 –10 6 eV levels. In order to explain these observations, we use a hybrid gyrofluid kinetic-electron model in an untilted dipolar topology to illustrate energization to high levels in weak current conditions by inertial Alfvén waves close to the Jupiter ionosphere for ambient plasma densities and magnetic field perturbations inferred from Juno satellite observations. The key to the high energization is the extremely low densities evident in the observations which necessitates the acceleration of electrons to very high velocities in order to carry the field-aligned current.
We present a new search for dark matter (DM) using planetary atmospheres. We point out that annihilating DM in planets can produce ionizing radiation, which can lead to excess production of ionospheric H 3 + . We apply this search strategy to the night side of Jupiter near the equator. The night side has zero solar irradiation, and low latitudes are sufficiently far from ionizing auroras, leading to a low-background search. We use data on ionospheric H 3 + emission collected three hours either side of Jovian midnight, during its flyby in 2000, and set novel constraints on the DM-nucleon scattering cross section down to about 10 − 38 cm 2 . We also highlight that DM atmospheric ionization may be detected in Jovian exoplanets using future high-precision measurements of planetary spectra. Published by the American Physical Society 2024
The Jupiter experiment was a series of measurements in the summer of 2017 to analyze the effects of voids in lead moderated plutonium assemblies. This experiment was part of a larger campaign that took place at the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC) in collaboration with the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) that also investigated assemblies with differing uranium enrichments. The purpose for this campaign was to provide data useful for a potential lead-bismuth cooled accelerator driven system. This data is needed due to the low number of benchmarks involving lead. Given the wide use of lead for shielding in addition to new reactor designs, there is a need for further benchmarking that this experiment could help fulfill. In addition, adding more benchmarks to the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (ICSBEP) is helpful for further validation of simulation methods used for criticality safety. This summary is an update on the current progress of this analysis, and all results shown are preliminary.
The Jupiter Laser Facility (JLF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is a mid-scale laser facility, with three different laser platforms: Janus (Target Area 1), Titan, and COMET. To help the facility and its users better understand the laser performance, a model of Janus and Titan has been developed using the Virtual Beamline ++ code (VBL++), which was initially developed by LLNL to model the National Ignition Facility beamlines and predict their performance.
The goal of this project is to provide operational support to run the Jupiter Laser Facility within the LaserNetUS network to achieve the following four objectives: • Develop new science, techniques, and platforms for discovery science and IFE research, in partnership with academia, other LaserNetUS nodes, and the greater community. • Advance the development of secondary sources of photons and particles for applications relevant to discovery science and IFE; • Serve as a testbed for new laser, optical, target, and diagnostic capabilities that will advance IFE; • Attract, train, and retain talent in high-energy-density and laser science that will be essential in furthering development of IFE, and help build new collaborations between national laboratory and academic researchers. We have accomplished our four objectives by: • Providing access to the three JLF platforms (Titan, Janus, and COMET) to LaserNetUS users after their proposals have been independently reviewed and ranked by the LaserNetUS PRP; • Providing expertise and technical capabilities to support focused science research thrusts at the facility; • Promoting and maintaining technical relationships and collaborations with other members of the LaserNetUS community to nurture and grow the discovery science and IFE workforce— especially students and early career scientists—on LaserNetUS facilities. • Augmenting JLF with specific improvements while coordinating efforts with LLNL organizations and collaborators to provide users with optimal laser, target, and diagnostic resources to help them maximize technical impact.
Dear JLF community, I cannot believe I am now entering my third year as JLF director — time definitely flies when you are having fun! FY25 was another pivotal year for the Jupiter Laser Facility, marked by both scientific achievement and growing visibility for our community. Building on the successful reopening and refurbishment of the facility, we continued to demonstrate how JLF drives innovation in high energy density and fusion energy science, laser technology, and workforce development. Across Janus, Titan, and COMET, users executed a diverse portfolio of experiments, from dynamic compression and opacity measurements to laser plasma interactions, laboratory astrophysics, and advanced diagnostics. These efforts are highlighted in this report, including the development of new probes that capture the time evolution of plasmas on a single shot, and diagnostics and platforms that are already impacting experiments at NIF and other large facilities. JLF continues to serve as both a testbed for new ideas and a bridge to larger scale campaigns. FY25 also showcased the broader role of JLF within the Laboratory and the national HED science ecosystem. The NIF JLF User Groups Meeting in February brought nearly 180 participants to Livermore and highlighted the scientific progress made during JLF’s first full year of renewed operations. JLF research and users were recognized with Director’s Institutional Awards and Early and Mid Career awards, underscoring the quality and impact of the work performed here. Our team also contributed prominently to national conversations about laser safety, plasma physics, and inertial fusion energy through invited talks, conferences, and professional society leadership. JLF’s integration with LaserNetUS deepened this year as well. We launched a new technical exchange program across LaserNetUS facilities and kicked it off with a JLF team visit to the BELLA Center at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. These exchanges are strengthening operations, sharing best practices, and improving the user experience across the network. Filming for the LaserNetUS “Behind the Scenes” series and participation in the annual LaserNetUS meeting further increased the visibility of our facility and our users. At the same time, JLF continues to play a central role in ambitious new programs, such as the Big Aperture Thulium laser effort funded through one of the DOE Office of Science Microelectronics Science Research Centers, which will use JLF infrastructure to explore next generation high rep rate lasers for EUV and x-ray source development. A core part of our mission remains training the next generation of scientists. In FY25, we welcomed another cohort of summer students, who joined experimental teams on Titan and presented their research at LLNL’s student poster symposium and national inertial fusion energy meetings. JLF users and early career scientists showcased their work at conferences across the country, highlighting experiments performed at the facility. These hands on experiences, and the mentoring provided by our staff and user teams, are central to JLF’s identity as a true user facility. Finally, FY25 reinforced JLF’s role as a focal point for partnerships and outreach. We hosted visits from international collaborators, science leaders, and we shared the story of the facility through venues such as the Big Ideas Lab podcast. These interactions help connect our work to a broader scientific and policy audience and open new pathways for collaboration. As we look ahead, the combination of refurbished hardware, new capabilities like STILETTO and enhanced short pulse performance on Titan, strong partnerships across LLNL and LaserNetUS, and a growing user community positions JLF for an even more ambitious program in the coming years. I am deeply grateful to our technical and operations staff for their dedication, to our LLNL partners for their continued support, and to our users for bringing bold, creative ideas to the facility. I look forward to more experiments, capabilities, partnerships, and groundbreaking science in the years to come! With brightest regards, Félicie Albert, JLF Director.
We present a new ground-based visual transmission spectrum of the hot Jupiter WASP-43b, obtained as part of the ACCESS Survey. The spectrum was derived from four transits observed between 2015 and 2018, with combined wavelength coverage between 5300 and 9000 Å and an average photometric precision of 708 ppm in 230 Å bins. We perform an atmospheric retrieval of our transmission spectrum combined with literature Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 observations to search for the presence of clouds/hazes as well as Na, K, Hα, and H{sub 2}O planetary absorption and stellar spot contamination over a combined spectral range of 5318–16420 Å. We do not detect a statistically significant presence of Na i or K i alkali lines, or Hα in the atmosphere of WASP-43b. We find that the observed transmission spectrum can be best explained by a combination of heterogeneities on the photosphere of the host star and a clear planetary atmosphere with H{sub 2}O. This model yields a log evidence of 8.26 ± 0.42 higher than a flat (featureless) spectrum. In particular, the observations marginally favor the presence of large, low-contrast spots over the four ACCESS transit epochs with an average covering fraction f{sub het}=0.27{sub −0.16}{sup +0.42} and temperature contrast ΔT = 132 K ± 132 K. Within the planet’s atmosphere, we recover a log H{sub 2}O volume mixing ratio of −2.78{sub −1.47}{sup +1.38}, which is consistent with previous H{sub 2}O abundance determinations for this planet.
Atmospheres of a number of ultra-hot Jupiters (UHJs) with temperatures ≳2000 K have been observed recently. Many of these planets show largely featureless thermal spectra in the near-infrared observed with the HST WFC3 spectrograph (1.1–1.7 μm) even though this spectral range contains strong H{sub 2}O opacity. Recent works have proposed the possibility of H- opacity masking the H{sub 2}O feature and/or thermal dissociation of H{sub 2}O causing its apparent depletion at the high temperatures of UHJs. In this work, we test these hypotheses using observations of the exoplanet WASP-18b as a case study. We report detailed atmospheric retrievals of the planet using the HyDRA retrieval code, extended to include the effects of H- opacity and thermal dissociation. We report constraints on the H{sub 2}O, CO, and H- abundances as well as the pressure–temperature profile of the dayside atmosphere for retrievals with and without H-/dissociation for each data set. We find that the H{sub 2}O and H- abundances are relatively unconstrained given the featureless WFC3 spectra. We do not conclusively detect H- in the planet, contrary to previous studies that used equilibrium models to infer its presence. The constraint on the CO abundance depends on the combination of WFC3 and Spitzer data, ranging from solar to super-solar CO values. We additionally see signs of a thermal inversion from two of the data sets. Our study demonstrates the potential of atmospheric retrievals of UHJs, including the effects of H- and thermal dissociation of molecules.
We report the 6.5σ detection of water from the hot Jupiter HD187123b with a Keplerian orbital velocity K {sub p} of 53 ± 13 km s{sup −1}. This high-confidence detection is made using a multi-epoch, high-resolution, cross-correlation technique, and corresponds to a planetary mass of 1.4{sub −0.3}{sup +0.5} M {sub J} and an orbital inclination of 21° ± 5°. The technique works by treating the planet/star system as a spectroscopic binary and obtaining high signal-to-noise, high-resolution observations at multiple points across the planet’s orbit to constrain the system’s binary dynamical motion. All together, seven epochs of Keck/NIRSPEC L-band observations were obtained, with five before the instrument upgrade and two after. Using high-resolution SCARLET planetary and PHOENIX stellar spectral models, we were able to drastically increase the confidence of the detection by running simulations that could reproduce, and thus remove, the nonrandom structured noise in the final likelihood space well. The ability to predict multi-epoch results will be extremely useful for furthering the technique. Here, we use these simulations to compare three different approaches to combining the cross correlations of high-resolution spectra and find that the Zucker log(L) approach is least affected by unwanted planet/star correlation for our HD187123 data set. Furthermore, we find that the same total signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) spread across an orbit in many, lower S/N epochs rather than fewer, higher S/N epochs could provide a more efficient detection. This work provides a necessary validation of multi-epoch simulations, which can be used to guide future observations and will be key to studying the atmospheres of farther separated, non-transiting exoplanets.
This paper presents the atmospheric characterization of three large, gaseous planets: WASP-127 b, WASP-79 b, and WASP-62 b. We analyzed spectroscopic data obtained with the G141 grism (1.088–1.68 μm) of the Wide Field Camera 3 on board the Hubble Space Telescope using the Iraclis pipeline and the TauREx3 retrieval code, both of which are publicly available. For WASP-127 b, which is the least dense planet discovered so far and is located in the short-period Neptune desert, our retrieval results found strong water absorption corresponding to an abundance of log(H{sub 2}O) = −2.71{sub −1.05}{sup +0.78} and absorption compatible with an iron hydride abundance of log(FeH) = −5.25{sub −1.10}{sup +0.88}, with an extended cloudy atmosphere. We also detected water vapor in the atmospheres of WASP-79 b and WASP-62 b, with best-fit models indicating the presence of iron hydride, too. We used the Atmospheric Detectability Index as well as Bayesian log evidence to quantify the strength of the detection and compared our results to the hot Jupiter population study by Tsiaras et al. While all the planets studied here are suitable targets for characterization with upcoming facilities such as the James Webb Space Telescope and Ariel, WASP-127 b is of particular interest due to its low density, and a thorough atmospheric study would develop our understanding of planet formation and migration.