Ko0K on 30/3/2007 at 02:17
And then there is this:
(
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/061109_monster_storm.html) "Eye" of Saturn's south pole
They're calling it an "eye," although I personally think they're being polite, but anyway... To me that seems to indicate convectional movement. Well, maybe that's where the push is coming from.
(edit)Uh, someone beat me to it.
Quote Posted by Pyrian
Perhaps - and this is pure speculation - perhaps convection currents deep in Saturn's core are creating a set of huge hexagonal structures. Meanwhile, only this one is actually causing a visible impact all the way at the top, perhaps carried - or allowed to be carried - somehow by the magnetic field?
That makes me wonder as to what the actual geometry of the magnetic field itself would be like.
Microwave Oven on 30/3/2007 at 03:17
You know, this hexagon looks a lot like the formula r(Θ)=cos (6 * Θ) * 0.03 + 1 on a polar graph. It's really just a simple cyclone with a sine wave imposed on the border.
That's my theory anyway.
Stitch on 30/3/2007 at 03:17
Quote Posted by Agent Monkeysee
Reading this thread after Criminal edited all his posts is like sharing the forums with an irate wookiee.
get this big walking carpet out of my face :mad:
Pyrian on 30/3/2007 at 06:24
Quote Posted by Microwave Oven
It's really just a simple cyclone with a sine wave imposed on the border.
What on Earth (or Saturn, really) would impose a sine wave of that period on the border?
ZylonBane on 30/3/2007 at 13:10
The monolith on Iapetus, silly.
Ko0K on 31/3/2007 at 09:21
(
http://www.esa.int/esapub/bulletin/bullet92/b92kohlh.htm) http://www.esa.int/esapub/bulletin/bullet92/b92kohlh.htm
Quote:
Unlike most planets with magnetic fields, however, Saturn's dipole lies within 1° of its spin axis.
If the magnetic field is serving as some sort of a conduit for dipolar convection, then the near-coaxial alignment with the rotational axis might have something to do with the weird features at the poles. Although, it's hard for me to visualize how something would go straight through the interior of the planet and come out the other end, undergoing phase shifts and all.
demagogue on 31/3/2007 at 17:37
I know the magnetic north pole on Earth moves over time. I'd assume it's the same with Saturn. If it does have something to do with the magnetic field, then it seems it's just a coincidence that we were able to take pictures just as the magnetic north pole is crossing near the spin-axis (I mean "just" in geological time).
Edit: On reflection, maybe not. The magnetic north pole has to do with how the insides are spinning, doesn't it? So maybe without a solid surface the insides of Saturn basically spin the same way throughout the whole planet? But then again, the other large planets have their poles separated, so maybe Saturn shouldn't be all that unique and it really is just a temporal coincidence like my first idea, after all.
