Interpretation of the Radio Rotation Period of Jupiter in Terms of the Cyclotron Theory

Abstract

Since 1961 the most intense source of Jovian decametric emission has drifted with respect to system III longitude by about + 100 per year (Douglas and Smith 1963; Smith et al. 1965). Interpreted as a change in the rotation rate, this would imply that the period increased by approximately 1·1 sec around 1960. Runcorn (1967) and Hide (1967) have interpreted this as a change in the rotation rate of the solid body of Jupiter, in which angular momentum is exchanged between Jupiter's core and the Great Red Spot.