title: Does Enceladus govern magnetospheric dynamics at Saturn?
abstract: Instruments on the Cassini spacecraft reveal that a heat source within Saturn's moon Enceladus powers a great plume of water ice particles and dust grains, a geyser that jets outward from the south polar regions and most likely serves as the dominant source of Saturn's E ring. The interaction of flowing magnetospheric plasma with the plume modifies the particle and field environment of Enceladus. The structure of Saturn's magnetosphere, the extended region of space threaded by magnetic-field lines linked to the planet, is shaped by the ion source at Enceladus, and magnetospheric dynamics may be affected by the rate at which fresh ions are created.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics and Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1567, USA. mkivelson@igpp.ucla.edu
authors.forename: Margaret Galland
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Kivelson
mesh_terms: D001272:Atmosphere / Q000737:chemistry; D005118:Extraterrestrial Environment / Q000737:chemistry; D008280:Magnetics; D018539:Saturn