Dix Planetary Science Seminar

Cassini observations of Saturn's ring system have revealed waves excited at resonances with Saturn's internal oscillations. The ongoing characterization of these waves is filling out a stunningly precise power spectrum for Saturn's oscillations, ushering in the era of full-fledged giant planet seismology. The earliest detected waves have already led to striking results about Saturn's deep interior, and the many subsequent wave detections have led to a rather complete dataset that strongly constrains the planet's interior rotation. I will present recent work interpreting these waves in terms of Saturn's fundamental mode oscillations, including the seismological determination of a notoriously elusive quantity: Saturn's spin period.