AAS 199th meeting, Washington, DC, January 2002
Session 81. High Angular Resolution: Low Frequency Radio Astronomy
Special Session Oral, Tuesday, January 8, 2002, 2:00-3:30pm, Georgetown East

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[81.02] Low-frequency Radio Observations of Jupiter

I. de Pater (UC Berkeley), B. Butler (NRAO/VLA)

We have conducted a brief campaign in September 1998 to determine Jupiter's radio spectrum from 74 MHz up to 8 GHz. At this meeting we report specifically on the 74 MHz observations, the lowest frequency at which this planet's synchrotron radiation has been observed without contamination by intense decametric emissions (there is no decametric emission at frequencies over 40 MHz). The planet was observed at higher frequencies at other telescopes simultaneously with the dual 74/330 MHz observations at the VLA. Jupiter's spectrum appears to be quite flat from 74 MHz up to 1.4 GHz, beyond which the flux density drops markedly. We compare the spectrum with model calculations, and will speculate on LOFAR's capabilities to map Jupiter in the decametric wavelength range (10-40 MHz), and the potential to detect radio emissions from extrasolar planets.


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