scholarly journals Water Vapour in the Martian Atmosphere

Nature ◽  
1908 ◽  
Vol 77 (2002) ◽  
pp. 442-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
WILLIAM E. ROLSTON
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapour ◽  
Martian Atmosphere

Investigating the relationship between ozone and water-ice in the martian atmosphere

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan Brown ◽  
Manish Patel ◽  
Stephen Lewis ◽  
Amel Bennaceur
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Water Vapour ◽  
Hydroxyl Radicals ◽  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Martian Atmosphere ◽  
Reaction Rates ◽  
Chemical Processes ◽  
Ice Clouds ◽  
Water Ice ◽  
The Relationship

<p>This project maps ozone and ice-water clouds detected in the martian atmosphere to assess the atmospheric chemistry between ozone, water-ice and hydroxyl radicals. Hydroxyl photochemistry may be indicated by a non-negative or fluctuating correlation between ozone and water-ice. This will contribute to understanding the stability of carbon dioxide and atmospheric chemistry of Mars.</p><p>Ozone (O<sub>3</sub>) can be used for tracking general circulation of the martian atmosphere and other trace chemicals, as well as acting as a proxy for water vapour. The photochemical break down of water vapour produces hydroxyl radicals known to participate in the destruction of ozone. The relationship between water vapour and ozone is therefore negatively correlated. Atmospheric water-ice concentrations may also follow this theory. The photochemical reactions between ozone, water-ice clouds and hydroxyl radicals are poorly understood in the martian atmosphere due to the short half-life and rapid reaction rates of hydroxyl radicals. These reactions destroy ozone, as well as indirectly contributing to the water cycle and stability of carbon dioxide (measured by the CO<sub>2</sub>–CO ratio). However, the detection of ozone in the presence of water-ice clouds suggests the relationship between them is not always anti-correlated. Global climate models (GCMs) struggle to describe the chemical processes occurring within water-ice clouds. For example, the heterogeneous photochemistry described in the LMD (Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique) GCM did not significantly improve the model. This leads to the following questions:<em> what is the relationship between water-ice clouds and ozone, and can the chemical reactions of hydroxyl radicals occurring within water-ice clouds be determined through this relationship?</em></p><p>This project aims to address these questions using nadir and occultation retrievals of ozone and water-ice clouds, potentially using retrievals from the UVIS instrument aboard NOMAD (Nadir and Occultation for Mars Discovery), ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter. Analysis will include temporal and spatial binning of data to help identify any patterns present. Correlation tests will be conducted to determine the significance of any relationship at short term and seasonal scales along a range of zonally averaged latitude photochemical model from the LMD-UK GCM will be used to further explore the chemical processes.</p><p>Interactions between hydroxyl radicals and the surface of water-ice clouds are poorly understood. Ozone abundance is greatest in the winter at the polar regions, which also coincides with the appearance of the polar hood clouds. The use of nadir observations will enable the comparison between total column of ozone abundance at high latitudes (>60°S) in a range of varying water-ice cloud opacities, as well as the equatorial region (30°S – 30°N) during aphelion. Water-ice clouds may remove hydroxyl radicals responsible for the destruction of ozone and thus the previously assumed anticorrelation between ozone and water-ice will not hold. The project will therefore assess the hypothesis that: <em>water-ice clouds may act as a sink for hydroxyl radicals.</em></p>

Water vapour abundance in Martian atmosphere from revised Mariner 9 IRIS data

2002 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.I. Ignatiev ◽  
L.V. Zasova ◽  
V. Formisano ◽  
D. Grassi ◽  
A. Maturilli
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapour ◽  
Martian Atmosphere ◽  
Mariner 9 ◽  
Iris Data

scholarly journals Isotopic composition of water vapour in the Martian atmosphere: vertical profiles from ACS MIR on ExoMars TGO

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Alday ◽  
Patrick G. J. Irwin ◽  
Colin F. Wilson ◽  
Kevin S. Olsen ◽  
Lucio Baggio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Isotopic Composition ◽  
Water Vapour ◽  
Martian Atmosphere ◽  
Vertical Profiles

Synergistic studies enhanced through data assimilation: combining multiple retrievals with a Mars Global Circulation Model

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Holmes ◽  
Stephen Lewis ◽  
Manish Patel ◽  
Paul Streeter ◽  
Kylash Rajendran
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Data Assimilation ◽  
Water Vapour ◽  
Circulation Model ◽  
Martian Atmosphere ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Global Circulation Model ◽  
Martian Surface ◽  
Reanalysis Dataset ◽  
Global Circulation

<div> <p><span data-contrast="auto">The wealth of observations now available from multiple spacecraft in orbit around Mars and rovers/landers on the surface provides information on several aspects of the atmosphere, although they are restricted in space and time. Most of the observational datasets are largely complementary, so an efficient method to combine them in a physically consistent way will lead to more constrained studies of the evolution of the global martian atmosphere. Data assimilation is one such method, combining multiple retrievals with a Mars Global Circulation Model (GCM) while accounting for errors in both sources of information and producing an optimal representation of the evolving martian surface and atmosphere. Data assimilation is a powerful tool in that multiple parameters each observed independently by different instruments (e.g. water vapour, ozone, carbon monoxide, dust opacity, temperature) are all realistically constrained and physically consistent at the same time, and unobserved parameters can also be influenced by assimilated data (e.g. water vapour assimilation will impact on the water ice distribution). It also allows for study of atmospheric features that change significantly between observations and identifying processes that lead to the observed changes.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"335551550":6,"335551620":6}"> </span></p> </div> <div> <p><span data-contrast="auto">Data assimilation studies are prevalent on Earth and are becoming more mainstream for Mars, with several different Mars GCMs now capable of assimilating retrievals using different assimilation schemes. The Open University (OU) ExoMars modelling group Mars GCM has been combined with several retrieval datasets via data assimilation to study features of the ozone, carbon monoxide, water and dust cycles alongside dynamical features such as the polar vortices, surface warming during a global dust storm and planetary waves. OpenMARS (Open access to Mars Assimilated Remote Soundings), a publicly available global reanalysis dataset from 1999-2015, was also created using the OU assimilation system.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"335551550":6,"335551620":6}"> </span></p> </div> <div> <p><span data-contrast="auto">This talk will give a brief overview of the benefits and limitations of data assimilation for Mars, and will demonstrate how combining retrievals of different atmospheric parameters with a Mars GCM via data assimilation leads to a better constrained analysis of the martian atmosphere than is possible with retrievals or GCMs alone.</span><span data-ccp-props="{"335551550":6,"335551620":6}"> </span></p> </div>

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