Program: GN-2021B-FT-210

Tidally locked icy satellites of the giant planets are expected to develop a leading/trailing hemispherical asymmetry in the strength of their near-IR water ice absorption bands, due to the the effects of impact gardening and magnetospheric particle bombardment. These effects should be strongest close to the planet. Miranda, the innermost classical moon of Uranus, should display a strong longitudinal asymmetry between its leading and trailing hemispheres, but observations are instead consistent with no leading/trailing difference. However, recent work indicates a difference in the strength of water ice absorption features between the anti-Uranus and sub-Uranus longitudes of Miranda's surface, an unusual finding that is unique in the Uranian system and that could provide insight into past geological processes on Miranda. We propose to obtain GNIRS spectra of the sub-Uranus and anti-Uranus quadrants of Miranda's surface in order to investigate this difference more closely.