Publication Abstracts
Carlson et al. 1992
, , and , 1992: The abundance and distribution of water vapor in the Jovian troposphere as inferred from Voyager IRIS observations. Astrophys. J., 388, 648-668, doi:10.1086/171182.
We have reanalyzed the Voyager IRIS spectra of the Jovian North Equatorial Belt (NEB) hot spots using a radiative transfer model which includes the full effects of anisotropic multiple scattering by clouds. The atmospheric model includes the three thermochemically predicted cloud layers, NH3, NH4SH, and H2O. Spectrally dependent cloud extinction is modeled using Mie theory and the refractive indices of NH3 ice, NH4SH ice, water, and H2O ice. The upper tropospheric temperature profile, gas abundances, height-dependent parahydrogen profile, and vertical distribution of NH3 cloud opacity are retrieved from an analysis of the far-infrared (180-1200/cm) IRIS observations. With these properties constrained, the 5-µm (1800-2300/cm) observations are analyzed to determine the atmospheric and cloud structure of the deeper atmosphere (P > 1.5 bars). ince the NEB hot spots correspond to regions of minimum cloud opacity, these observations allow us to probe the atmosphere down to the ≃ 5 bar level. The results show that the abundance of water is at least 1.5 times solar with 2 times solar (0.00276 mixing ratio relative to H2) providing the best-fit to the Voyager IRIS hot spot observations. We then use IRIS observations of the Tropical and Equatorial regions to examine spatial variations in relative humidity. Our results show that regions with average 5 µm brightness temperatures in excess of 230 K are areas of reduced relative humidity, while colder regions are best-fit with a saturated water profile.
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BibTeX Citation
@article{ca05800e,
author={Carlson, B. E. and Lacis, A. A. and Rossow, W. B.},
title={The abundance and distribution of water vapor in the Jovian troposphere as inferred from Voyager IRIS observations},
year={1992},
journal={Astrophys. J.},
volume={388},
pages={648--668},
doi={10.1086/171182},
}
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RIS Citation
TY - JOUR ID - ca05800e AU - Carlson, B. E. AU - Lacis, A. A. AU - Rossow, W. B. PY - 1992 TI - The abundance and distribution of water vapor in the Jovian troposphere as inferred from Voyager IRIS observations JA - Astrophys. J. VL - 388 SP - 648 EP - 668 DO - 10.1086/171182 ER -
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