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Abstract:
Stochastic dust charge fluctuations have been studied in the light of Cassini data on the
near-Enceladus plasma environment. Estimates of fluctuation time scales showed that this process can be
of importance for the grains emanating from the icy moon. The analytical modeling predicts that in the
dust-loaded Enceladus plasma a majority of the grains acquires fluctuating negative charges, but there
might appear a minority of positively charged particles. The probability of this effect mostly depends on
the ratio of the dust/plasma number densities. Our findings appear to be supported by the available Cassini
Plasma Spectrometer measurements of the charged grain distributions during E3 and E5 plume flybys.
The theoretical results can also provide new insights into the intricate process of particle dynamics in the
inner magnetosphere.
