Venus: An Upper Limit on Intrinsic Magnetic Dipole Moment Based on Absence of a Radiation Belt

Abstract

On the basis of the absence of energetic electrons (E_e 〉 45 kiloelectron volts) and protons (E_p 〉 320 kiloelectron volts) associated with Venus to within a radial distance of 10,150 kilometers from the center of the planet and using a physical similitude argument and the observational and theoretical knowledge of the magnetosphere of Earth, we conclude that the intrinsic magnetic dipole moment of Venus is almost certainly less than 0.01 and probably less than 0.001 of that of Earth. Corresponding upper limits on the magnetic field at the equatorial surface of Venus are about 350 and 35 x 10^-5 gauss, respectively.