Search for Jovian Hectometric Continuum Radiation

Abstract

SEVERAL observers have reported essentially continuous radiation from Jupiter at low frequencies. Dulk and Clark¹ believe Jupiter to be continuously emitting weak radiation at and below 10 MHz. They found the minimum flux at 10 MHz to be 5 × 10⁻²³ W m⁻² Hz⁻¹ on all but one occasion. McCulloch and Ellis² measured a mean flux of 10⁻²¹ w m⁻² Hz⁻¹ at 4.7 MHz although it was frequently below this level. They remark that at low frequencies weak radiation from Jupiter is nearly always present. Slysh³ proposed that the intense, constant radiation observed at 200 kHz from several spacecraft was chiefly of Jovian origin. He suggested that a spectral index of 2.5 may hold from 0.20 to 20 MHz. If this were correct it should be possible to detect the Jovian continuum with the Radio Astronomy Explorer satellite (RAE–I).