Volume Scattering Losses Evaluation for Radar Sounding of Jovian Icy Moons

The icy crusts of the Jovian moons Europa, Ganymede and Callisto will be explored in the next future by orbiting spacecrafts hosting onboard Ice Penetrating Radars (IPRs). The volumetric scattering associated to a layer of icy regolith could potentially affect the propagation of the radar signal in the subsurface. We evaluate the efficiency of such phenomenon and the associated losses for the two relevant frequencies of 9 and 60 MHz. Our results demonstrate that for the lower frequency there will be no significative losses in the radar propagation, even in the most pessimistic scenario. Conversely, for the higher frequency, a very thick layer of regolith could reasonably give rise to a severe attenuation; therefore the performances at 60 MHz will be strictly governed by the local geology of the sounded area.