What can we learn from the auroral footprints of the Jovian moons? (Invited)

The signature of electromagnetic interaction between the moons Io, Europa and Ganymede and the Jovian magnetosphere can be observed on Jupiter’s polar ionosphere in the form of auroral footprints. The observation campaigns carried out during the past few years by the Hubble Space Telescope in the Far UV domain provided not only a high spatial and temporal resolution but also an unprecedented System III longitude coverage. Consequently, these recent observations of the morphology and the dynamics of the footprints proved to be very powerful tools to probe these interactions. For example, the locations of the satellite footprints have been used as a valuable constraint for building Jovian magnetic field models. Moreover, analysis of the multiplicity of the Io footprint spots as well as their relative motion lead to new conclusions on the electron acceleration processes. The altitude of the Io footprint has also been used to infer the typical energy of the impinging electrons. Finally, the study of the three-dimensional shape and of the brightness of the different sub-structures of the footprints provides important clues on the processes at play between Io and the Jovian ionosphere. On the theoretical side, considerable efforts have also been recently carried out in order to model the propagation of the Alfvén waves generated at Io and the subsequent acceleration of auroral electrons. Coupled with HST images, radio decametric measurements and in situ data from the Galileo spacecraft, these advances provide a brand new understanding of the satellite footprints.