Discoveries made by Voyager 2 in 1986 led to the conclusion that Uranus possesses the most extreme magnetosphere within the Solar System. Reanalysis of this dataset suggests that the extreme observations made by Voyager 2 could have been caused by anomalously intense upstream solar wind conditions.
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References
Ness, N. F. et al. Magnetic fields at Uranus. Science 233, 85–89 (1986). This article reports the discoveries about the magnetic field at Uranus from the Voyager 2 flyby.
Mauk, B. H. et al. The hot plasma and radiation environment of the Uranian magnetosphere. J. Geophys. Res. Space Phys. 92, 15283–15308 (1987). This article reports on the ‘vacuum’ magnetosphere plasma observation at Uranus from Voyager 2.
Kollmann, P. et al. Magnetospheric studies: a requirement for addressing interdisciplinary mysteries in the ice giant systems. Space Sci. Rev. 216, 78 (2020). A review article describing the major mysteries remaining from the Voyager 2 flyby.
Jia, X. et al. Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics of Saturn’s magnetosphere: a global MHD simulation. J. Geophys. Res. 117, A05225 (2012). This article reports on plasma loss at Saturn.
Roussos, E. & Kollmann, P. in Magnetospheres in the Solar System (eds Maggiolo, R. et al.) Ch. 32 (American Geophysical Union, 2021). A review chapter describing the radiation belts of Jupiter and Saturn.
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This is a summary of: Jasinski, J. M. et al. The anomalous state of Uranus’s magnetosphere during the Voyager 2 flyby. Nat. Astron. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02389-3 (2024).
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Voyager 2 observed Uranus’s magnetosphere in a rare, compressed state. Nat Astron (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02390-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02390-w
