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S. Charnoz, C. Leyrat, C. Ferrari (Université Paris 7 & CEA Saclay), D. Dubrueil (CEA Saclay), A. Brahic (Université Paris 7)
Saturn's rings will be thoroughly observed during the next CASSINI mission to Saturn (2004-2008). In particular the CIRS spectrometer will map the ring temperatures in the infrared domain to set constraints on the vertical structure of the rings, their thermal properties and more particularly the spin of particles. To support the interpretation of these data, we have built a sheared-box local simulation of planetary rings, including collisions and self-gravitation, which allows us to explore the behaviour of particles spin and vertical structure. By varying initial conditions, we show that the inclusion of self-gravity influences the particle's spin. This phenomenon has already been observed by Salo et al. (Icarus, 1995) and is explored here in more details.It seems to depends on the balance between self-gravity and the keplerian shear : particles in denser and/or outer rings spins slightly faster. In addition, the formation of wakes, even in low-density rings, influences the interparticle shadowing and then their surface temperature. Those aspects will be presented from a dynamical point of view. The distribution of spins obtained by these simulations is currently included in a model of thermal emission of Saturn's rings (see Leyrat et al. in this issue) to test them against observations.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: charnoz@cea.fr
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35 #4
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.