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Radio Science
JPL radio science researchers participate in many NASA deep space missions. Their contribute to developing engineering requirements consistent with the scientific objectives for the spacecraft and ground elements of Radio Science instruments; participate in instrument design and development; acquire the science data; participate in analysis and interpretation.
Radio links between spacecraft and Earth are utilized to examine changes in the characteristics of the electromagnetic waves such as the phase/frequency, amplitude, radio spectrum, or polarization to investigate many aspects of planetary science, space physics and fundamental physics. Radio Science investigations include:
Currently, radio scientists at JPL are supporting several NASA missions, including Cassini, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, and Messenger and ESA missions Mars Express, Venus Express, and Rosetta. They are also supporting missions currently in development including Juno and GRAIL. They have recently completed work on Galileo, Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Odyssey, NEAR, Lunar Prospector, and other missions.
A profile of the rings of Saturn from radio occultations at three wavelengths (three radios on-board the Cassini spacecraft at different frequencies) S-band (red), X-band (green) and Ka-band (blue). The signal extinction is shown from which the optical thickness and particle size distribution are inferred The profile is superimposed on an image of the rings generated from radio occultation data (credit: E. A. Marouf, SJSU).
Selected Findings & Discoveries
A gravity map of Mars generated from radio tracking techniques shows variations esulting from surface and subsurface density variations (credit A.S. Konopliv, JPL).
Determination of the ring structure and particle size distribution for Saturn and Uranus
First measurement of surface pressure and detection of ionospheres of Titan and Triton
Measurement of electron column density latitude profile of the Io Plasma Torus
Discovery of lunar mascons
Determination of masses and modeling of bulk compositions of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Titan, and Triton, Mars, Venus, and Moon
Modeling the mass distribution in the interiors of the large moons of Jupiter and Saturn
High-resolution gravitational fields of the Moon, Mars, Venus
First detection of gravity field variations on a planet (Mars)
Profile of deep winds on Jupiter and Titan via probe Doppler Wind Experiments
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