EMIRS Observations of the Aphelion-Season Mars Atmosphere

Michael D. Smith , Khalid Badri , Samuel A. Atwood , Christopher S. Edwards , Philip R. Christensen , Michael J. Wolff , Tanguy Bertrand (1) , François Forget (2) , Eman Al Tunaiji , Christopher Wolfe , Nathan Smith , Saadat Anwar

1 LESIA - Laboratoire d'études spatiales et d'instrumentation en astrophysique = Laboratory of Space Studies and Instrumentation in Astrophysics
2 LMD - Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique (UMR 8539)

Thermal infrared spectra taken by the Emirates Mars Infrared Spectrometer (EMIRS) on-board the Emirates Mars Mission (EMM) spacecraft are well suited for the retrieval of surface temperatures, the atmospheric temperature profile from the surface to ∼40 km, and the column abundance of dust aerosols, water ice clouds, and water vapor. A constrained linear inversion retrieval routine that includes multiple scattering has been developed and optimized for this purpose. Here, we present a brief overview of the retrieval algorithm and first atmospheric science results from observations taken by EMIRS over the first Earth year of EMM Science Phase operations. These retrievals show extensive water ice clouds, typical for the aphelion season of these observations, and the expected north polar summer maximum and subsequent equatorward transport of water vapor is well documented. An unusually strong and early regional dust storm and its associated thermal response were also observed.

Domains: Sciences of the Universe [physics]

Michael D. Smith, Khalid Badri, Samuel A. Atwood, Christopher S. Edwards, Philip R. Christensen, et al.. EMIRS Observations of the Aphelion-Season Mars Atmosphere. Geophysical Research Letters, 2022, 49, ⟨10.1029/2022GL099636⟩. ⟨insu-03778093⟩