A new framework to explain changes in Io's footprint tail electron fluxes in the Juno era

Jupiter’s aurora is complex and dynamic, with a large number of distinct auroral features and regions generated by multiple phenomena. Of these features, Io’s auroral signature is one of the most persistent and identifiable aurora, with a rich observational history spanning decades of remote observations. Since Juno arrived at Jupiter, providing in-situ transits through flux tubes directly connected to Io’s auroral emissions, its diverse set of instruments have revealed an even more complex and dynamic picture of Io’s auroral interaction. In this presentation, we report on Juno observations of precipitating electron fluxes connected to 18 crossings of Io’s footprint tail aurora, over altitudes of 0.15 to 1.1 Jovian radii (R_J). We will highlight how the strength of precipitating electron fluxes is dominantly organized by “Io-Alfvén tail distance”, the angle along Io’s orbit between Io and an Alfvén wave trajectory connected to the tail aurora. We will discuss how these fluxes were best fit with an exponential as a function of down-tail extent with an e-folding distance of 21˚, the acceleration region altitude likely increases down-tail, and most of the parallel electron acceleration sustaining the tail aurora occurs above 1 R_J in altitude. Finally, we will highlight how Juno has likely transited Io’s Main Alfvén Wing fluxtube, observing a characteristically distinct signature with precipitating electron fluxes ~600 mW/m² and an acceleration region extending as low as 0.4 R_J in altitude.