Temperature, Clouds, and Aerosols in the Terrestrial Bodies of the Solar System

Franck Montmessin (1) , Anni Määttänen (1)

1 PLANETO - LATMOS

This chapter is intended to provide a concise overview of the state of knowledge regarding the temperature, clouds, and aerosols of the terrestrial bodies of our Solar System, namely Mars, Venus, and Titan. These bodies are the planetary objects that most resemble the Earth. The atmosphere of each body is described in terms of composition and vertical structure. We distinguish and compare the extent of the various atmospheric compartments that form the atmospheric column, from the troposphere up to the thermosphere. The temperature structure is then presented, and the main causes known for explaining its variations on each body are listed. The specific roles of waves, radiation, as well as convection in shaping temperature profiles are then discussed. In a second part, the particulate components of these atmospheres, clouds and aerosols, are described in terms of their physical properties (composition, optical properties) and of their variability in both space and time. Mars , Venus, and Titan exhibit a remarkable variety of clouds and aerosols. Our knowledge about them has made considerable progress thanks to the success of space missions during the last two decades, while in parallel theoretical models have improved to the point that three-dimensional Global Climate Models now include the detailed physics of clouds and aerosols. As a result, it is now widely recognized that particulates play a key role in forcing the climate and the evolution of these bodies.

Keywords: Mars; Venus; Tittan; Atmospheres; Diurnal solar forcing; Atmospheric waves; Radiative equilibrium; Photodissociation; Breaking wave; Tides; Solar System; Radiative transfer; Troposphere; Stratosphere; Mesosphere; Thermosphere; Radiation; Boundary layer; Scale height; Greenhouse; Infrared; Surface temperature; Cloud layer; Thermodynamic equilibrium; Thermal behavior; Tropopause; Stratopause; Mesopause; Isothermal; Gravity wave; Radiative-convective equilibrium; Dust storms; Diabatic; Mesoscale models; Mars Odyssey; Mars Express; Mars Reconnaissance; Orbiter; Venus Express; Cassini

Domains: Sciences of the Universe [physics]

Franck Montmessin, Anni Määttänen. Temperature, Clouds, and Aerosols in the Terrestrial Bodies of the Solar System. Hans J. DeegJuan; Antonio Belmonte (eds). Handbook of Exoplanets, Springer, 29 p., 2018, 978-3-319-30648-3. ⟨10.1007/978-3-319-30648-3_48-1⟩. ⟨insu-01693888⟩