Infrared Thermal Mapping of the Martian Surface and Atmosphere: First Results

The Viking infrared thermal mapper measures the thermal emission of the martian surface and atmosphere and the total reflected sunlight. With the high resolution and dense coverage being achieved, planetwide thermal structure is apparent at large and small scales. The thermal behavior of the best-ob...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1976-08, Vol.193 (4255), p.780-786
Main Authors: Kieffer, Hugh H., Chase, Stillman C., Miner, Ellis D., Palluconi, Frank Don, Münch, Guido, Neugebauer, Gerry, Martin, Terry Z.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Atmospheric temperature
Atmospherics
Clouds
Condensation
Inertia
Mars
Polar regions
Surface areas
Surface temperature
Vapors
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Summary:The Viking infrared thermal mapper measures the thermal emission of the martian surface and atmosphere and the total reflected sunlight. With the high resolution and dense coverage being achieved, planetwide thermal structure is apparent at large and small scales. The thermal behavior of the best-observed areas, the landing sites, cannot be explained by simple homogeneous models. The data contain clear indications for the relevance of additional factors such as detailed surface texture and the occurrence of clouds. Areas in the polar night have temperatures distinctly lower than the CO$_{2}$ condensation point at the surface pressure. This observation implies that the annual atmospheric condensation is less than previously assumed and that either thick CO$_{2}$ clouds exist at the 20-kilometer level or that the polar atmosphere is locally enriched by noncondensable gases.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.193.4255.780