A Search for Seismic Waves from the Impact of the SL/9 R Fragment

Jupiter was observed in the aftermath of its impact with fragment R of Comet Shoemaker-Levy/9 to search for seismic waves excited by the collision. Observations were made in the 7.8 μm methane emission band with the MIRAC2 camera at the IRTF in an attempt to detect the local perturbation to the equilibrium stratospheric temperature profile induced by the wave. Detection of a jovian seismic wave would provide the tightest constraint to date on interior models of Jupiter. Seismic waves were detected in neither direct images of the planet nor in a composite time-distance diagram which utilizes all of the available imagery. This non-detection allows us to place an upper limit on the energy of the fragment R impact of 1 × 10²⁸erg, assuming a seismic wave excitation efficiency of 15%.