Work

Solving the Mystery of the Electron Radiation Belt at Uranus: Leveraging Knowledge of Earth's Radiation Belts in a Re‐Examination of Voyager 2 Observations

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Voyager 2 provided the only direct measurement of the radiation environment at Uranus and established the well‐accepted characterization of a system with a weaker ion radiation belt and surprisingly intense electron radiation belt. Recent re‐analysis of the flyby, however, suggests that these observations were not taken during normal solar wind conditions, and instead occurred while a large solar wind transient, a corotating interaction region, was passing over the system. With this context, this study compares the Voyager 2 observations to a similar event observed at Earth. This comparative approach, along with an expanded contextual interpretation of the Voyager 2 flyby, suggests that solar wind‐magnetospheric interactions at Uranus may have driven enhanced lower band chorus wave emissions capable of accelerating electrons to relativistic energies. This motivates new, more expansive questions to be explored at Uranus and highlights the need for a Uranus orbiter mission.

Source: Geophysical Research Letters

DOI: 10.1029/2025gl119311

Authors: R. C. Allen, S. K. Vines, G. C. Ho

Institution: Southwest Research Institute

Language: English

Topic: Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,190

Funders: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Southwest Research Institute, Nuclear Safety and Security Commission