Exploring Enceladus's Interior Structure Using Electromagnetic Induction

TL;DR

This paper evaluates electromagnetic induction techniques to probe Enceladus's interior, aiming to determine ocean salinity, ice shell thickness, and core properties through global and local measurements.

Contribution

It develops a physical framework for EM induction modeling and assesses the feasibility of using orbiter and lander measurements to characterize Enceladus's subsurface structure.

Findings

Magnetic field variations correlate with ice-shell thickness and ocean conductivity.

Detection of magnetic variations can indicate a highly conductive ocean.

A low-altitude orbiter and lander can effectively constrain interior properties.

Abstract

Electromagnetic (EM) sounding can constrain the electrical structure of Enceladus and, in turn, the salinity of its ocean and the porosity, fluid content, and thermal state of its hydrothermally active core. Here, we assess the feasibility of EM sounding at Enceladus using both global (orbiter) and local (lander) EM induction transfer functions. We provide a physical framework for modeling EM induction for 1-D and 3-D subsurface conductivity models and discuss how transfer functions can be estimated from global or local measurements of the magnetic and electric fields. We simulate 3-D induction effects arising from variations in ice-shell thickness. The magnitude of these effects in the magnetic field correlates with the ice-shell thickness at the surface and is strongly dependent on the ocean's conductivity. These magnetic variations, if observed, would favor a moderately to highly conductive ocean, providing lower bounds on salinity and volatile content. The absence of these effects indicates a thicker, more homogeneous ice shell and/or a lower-conductivity ocean. Given plausible magnitudes, a polar-orbiting mission with low-altitude measurements will be required to detect these effects. In summary, an orbiter will constrain global ocean conductivity using long-period induction and possibly map the ice thickness variations. The detailed EM sounding of both the hydrosphere and the core can be achieved by a lander-based broadband EM sounding at periods $\approx 10^1-10^5$ s to probe ocean salinity and thickness, as well as core properties including porosity, fluid content, and temperature.