Distance to the IBEX Ribbon Source Inferred from Parallax

TL;DR

This study measures the parallax of the IBEX ribbon using observations from opposite sides of the Sun, estimating its distance to be approximately 140 AU, supporting models with the source just outside the heliopause.

Contribution

The paper introduces a method to determine the distance to the IBEX ribbon source by analyzing parallax from IBEX observations, providing new constraints on its location.

Findings

Parallax angle of 0.41°±0.15° measured.

Estimated ribbon source distance of 140 AU.

Supports models with the source outside the heliopause.

Abstract

Maps of Energetic Neutral Atom (ENA) fluxes obtained from Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) observations revealed a bright structure extending over the sky, subsequently dubbed the IBEX ribbon. The ribbon had not been expected from the existing models and theories prior to IBEX, and a number of mechanisms have since been proposed to explain the observations. In these mechanisms, the observed ENAs emerge from source plasmas located at different distances from the Sun. Since each part of the sky is observed by IBEX twice during the year from opposite sides of the Sun, the apparent position of the ribbon as observed in the sky is shifted due to parallax. To determine the ribbon parallax, we found the precise location of the maximum signal of the ribbon observed in each orbital arc. The obtained apparent positions were subsequently corrected for the Compton-Getting effect, gravitational deflection, and radiation pressure. Finally, we selected a part of the ribbon where its position is similar between the IBEX energy passbands. We compared the apparent positions obtained from the viewing locations on the opposite sides of the Sun, and found that they are shifted by a parallax angle of $0.41^\circ\pm0.15^\circ$, which corresponds to a distance of $140^{+84}_{-38}$ AU. This finding supports models of the ribbon with the source located just outside the heliopause.