The potential for neutral tori at Uranus and Neptune

Neutral Tori are generally a result of particles escaping from a planetary atmosphere, its rings or satellites through internal source mechanisms or interactions with the magnetosphere. These particles then form a population of co-orbiting neutral particles that provide a source of plasma to the magnetosphere as well as drive dynamics and chemistry. Thus, understanding neutral tori provides key (sometimes unique) insight into planetary magnetospheres, moon source characterization and understanding, and ultimately can provide insight to past, present and future of magnetospheres. Current increased neutral torus research had provided significant insight into Saturn and Jupiter’s magnetosphere and gas giants in general. These results indicated great potential for improving our understanding the magnetospheres of Uranus and Neptune whose orientations offer the possibility of magnetospheric configurations not previously observed. Here, we will discuss how the Gas Giant neutral torus state of understanding has signifcaintly increased and may provide an analogy for what we may expect from studying these features on Ice Giants. We also present some preliminary modeling to speculate on the possible presence of neutral tori at Uranus and Neptune.