Spatial and short-term temporal variations in Uranus’ near-infrared spectrum

We obtained near-infrared spectra of Uranus at NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility during the planet’s September 2006 and September 2007 oppositions. Ratios between the spectra indicate that in 2006, Uranus’ methane windows appeared much brighter in the south than in the north, and that between 2006...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Icarus (New York, N.Y. 1962) N.Y. 1962), 2009-09, Vol.203 (1), p.331-335
Main Authors: Norwood, J.W., Chanover, N.J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astronomy
Atmosphere
Atmospheres
Earth, ocean, space
Exact sciences and technology
Infrared observations
Solar system
Spectroscopy
Structure
Uranus
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Summary:We obtained near-infrared spectra of Uranus at NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility during the planet’s September 2006 and September 2007 oppositions. Ratios between the spectra indicate that in 2006, Uranus’ methane windows appeared much brighter in the south than in the north, and that between 2006 and 2007 they grew dimmer in the south and brighter in the north; we interpret these variations to be primarily caused by changing brightness in Uranus’ upper cloud layer near 2 bars.
ISSN:0019-1035
1090-2643
DOI:10.1016/j.icarus.2009.05.009