Electric potential jumps in the Io-Jupiter flux tube

The Io flux tube (IFT), along which Io interacts with the Jovian magnetosphere, is the place of plasma acceleration processes resulting in auroral like emissions, in UV, IR and Radio emissions in the decameter range. At Earth, the study of the acceleration processes is mainly made by in situ measurements. Acceleration processes at Jupiter were first deduced from the observation of a particular kind of decameter radio emissions from the IFT: the short (S-)bursts. These radio bursts present a negative drift in the time-frequency domain, which is related to the motion of the energetic electrons which produce them. The measure of their drift thus permits the kinetic energy of the electrons to be obtained, as well as its variations along the IFT which have been interpreted as electric potential jumps. Using an enhanced S-burst detection and drift measurement method, more than 1h of quasi-continuous decametric emissions recorded at the Kharkov UTR-2 radiotelescope have been analyzed. We observe the evolution Of the electron kinetic energy with the longitude of Io with a resolution of similar to 10 s, and detect the presence of acceleration structures with characteristics being consistent with electric potential jumps of few hundred volts, and moving along the IFT in the upward direction (toward Io) at the local sound velocity. (C) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.