The Planetary Science Journal (Jan 2022)
The Case for a New Frontiers–Class Uranus Orbiter: System Science at an Underexplored and Unique World with a Mid-scale Mission
- Ian J. Cohen,
- Chloe Beddingfield,
- Robert Chancia,
- Gina DiBraccio,
- Matthew Hedman,
- Shannon MacKenzie,
- Barry Mauk,
- Kunio M. Sayanagi,
- Krista M. Soderlund,
- Elizabeth Turtle,
- Caitlin Ahrens,
- Christopher S. Arridge,
- Shawn M. Brooks,
- Emma Bunce,
- Sebastien Charnoz,
- Athena Coustenis,
- Robert A. Dillman,
- Soumyo Dutta,
- Leigh N. Fletcher,
- Rebecca Harbison,
- Ravit Helled,
- Richard Holme,
- Lauren Jozwiak,
- Yasumasa Kasaba,
- Peter Kollmann,
- Statia Luszcz-Cook,
- Kathleen Mandt,
- Olivier Mousis,
- Alessandro Mura,
- Go Murakami,
- Marzia Parisi,
- Abigail Rymer,
- Sabine Stanley,
- Katrin Stephan,
- Ronald J. Vervack, Jr.,
- Michael H. Wong,
- Peter Wurz
Affiliations
- Ian J. Cohen
- ORCiD
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Chloe Beddingfield
- ORCiD
- The SETI Institute , Mountain View, CA 94043, USA; NASA Ames Research Center , Space Science and Astrobiology Division, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
- Robert Chancia
- ORCiD
- University of Idaho , Department of Physics, Moscow, ID 83844, USA; Now at Rochester Institute of Technology , Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science, Rochester, NY 14623, USA
- Gina DiBraccio
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , Sciences and Exploration Directorate, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
- Matthew Hedman
- University of Idaho , Department of Physics, Moscow, ID 83844, USA
- Shannon MacKenzie
- ORCiD
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Barry Mauk
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Kunio M. Sayanagi
- Hampton University , Department of Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Hampton, VA 23668, USA
- Krista M. Soderlund
- ORCiD
- University of Texas at Austin , Institute for Geophysics, Austin, TX 78758, USA
- Elizabeth Turtle
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Caitlin Ahrens
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , Sciences and Exploration Directorate, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
- Christopher S. Arridge
- University of Lancaster , Department of Physics, Lancaster, LA1 4YW, UK
- Shawn M. Brooks
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory , California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
- Emma Bunce
- University of Leicester , School of Physics and Astronomy, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK
- Sebastien Charnoz
- ORCiD
- University of Paris/Paris Globe Institute of Physics , Department of Cosmochemistry, Astrophysics and Experimental Geophysics, F-75005 Paris, France
- Athena Coustenis
- ORCiD
- Center National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)/Laboratoire d’Etudes Spatiales et d’Instrumentation en Astrophysique (LESIA)/Paris-Meudon Observatory , F-92190 Meudon, France
- Robert A. Dillman
- NASA Langley Research Center , Hampton, VA 23666, USA
- Soumyo Dutta
- ORCiD
- University of Paris/Paris Globe Institute of Physics , Department of Cosmochemistry, Astrophysics and Experimental Geophysics, F-75005 Paris, France
- Leigh N. Fletcher
- ORCiD
- University of Leicester , School of Physics and Astronomy, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK
- Rebecca Harbison
- University of Nebraska–Lincoln , Department of Physics & Astronomy, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA
- Ravit Helled
- ORCiD
- University of Zurich , Center for Theoretical Astrophysics & Cosmology, Institute for Computational Science, 190 CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Richard Holme
- University of Liverpool , Department of Earth, Ocean and Ecological Sciences, Liverpool, L69 3BX, UK
- Lauren Jozwiak
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Yasumasa Kasaba
- Tohoku University , Planetary Plasma and Atmospheric Research Center, Aoba, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8578, Japan
- Peter Kollmann
- ORCiD
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Statia Luszcz-Cook
- American Museum of Natural History , Department of Astrophysics, New York, NY 10024, USA; Columbia University , Department of Astronomy, New York, NY 10027, USA
- Kathleen Mandt
- ORCiD
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Olivier Mousis
- Aix Marseille Université , Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, F-13013 Marseille, France
- Alessandro Mura
- ORCiD
- Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF)/Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali (IAPS) , I-00133, Roma, Rome, Italy
- Go Murakami
- Institute of Space and Astronautical Science , Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5210, Japan
- Marzia Parisi
- ORCiD
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory , California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
- Abigail Rymer
- ORCiD
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Sabine Stanley
- ORCiD
- Johns Hopkins University , Morton K. Blaustein Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
- Katrin Stephan
- German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Planetary Research , Rutherfordstrasse 2, D-12489 Berlin, Germany
- Ronald J. Vervack, Jr.
- ORCiD
- The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Exploration Sector , Laurel, MD 20723, USA ; [email protected]
- Michael H. Wong
- ORCiD
- University of California , Berkeley, Department of Astronomy, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
- Peter Wurz
- ORCiD
- University of Bern , Space Exploration and Planetary Division, Hochschulstrasse 6, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/ac5113
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 3,
no. 3
p. 58
Abstract
Current knowledge of the Uranian system is limited to observations from the flyby of Voyager 2 and limited remote observations. However, Uranus remains a highly compelling scientific target due to the unique properties of many aspects of the planet itself and its system. Future exploration of Uranus must focus on cross-disciplinary science that spans the range of research areas from the planet’s interior, atmosphere, and magnetosphere to the its rings and satellites, as well as the interactions between them. Detailed study of Uranus by an orbiter is crucial not only for valuable insights into the formation and evolution of our solar system but also for providing ground truths for the understanding of exoplanets. As such, exploration of Uranus will not only enhance our understanding of the ice giant planets themselves but also extend to planetary dynamics throughout our solar system and beyond. The timeliness of exploring Uranus is great, as the community hopes to return in time to image unseen portions of the satellites and magnetospheric configurations. This urgency motivates evaluation of what science can be achieved with a lower-cost, potentially faster-turnaround mission, such as a New Frontiers–class orbiter mission. This paper outlines the scientific case for and the technological and design considerations that must be addressed by future studies to enable a New Frontiers–class Uranus orbiter with balanced cross-disciplinary science objectives. In particular, studies that trade scientific scope and instrumentation and operational capabilities against simpler and cheaper options must be fundamental to the mission formulation.
Keywords
- Uranus
- Solar system planets
- Extrasolar gaseous giant planets
- Planetary rings
- Uranian satellites
- Planetary magnetospheres
