High-Resolution 10-micronmeter Spectroscopy of Ammonia and Phosphine Lines on Jupiter

Details High-Resolution 10-micronmeter Spectroscopy of Ammonia and Phosphine Lines on Jupiter High-Resolution 10-micronmeter Spectroscopy of Ammonia and Phosphine Lines on Jupiter

Feb 1998

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1998icar..131..317l&link_type=abstract

Icarus, Volume 131, Issue 2, pp. 317-333.

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19

Scientific paper

High spectral resolution measurements of NH_3 and PH_3 lines on Jupiter in the 10.5- to 11.2-μm range are presented. Observations, recorded on January 21-23, 1991, cover the 10 deg-40 degS latitude range and several longitudes including the Great Red Spot (GRS). Information on the temperature in the upper troposphere was retrieved from the continuum radiance at wavelengths around 12.8 and 17.8 mum. At all observed longitudes, the 200-mbar temperature field is minimum at latitudes of 20 deg-25 degS near the location of the South Tropical Zone, in agreement with Voyager infrared retrievals. This minimum temperature is lower over the GRS than at other longitudes. The ammonia mixing ratio at ~380 mbar is not significantly enhanced over the GRS. The phosphine abundance probed at ~580 mbar is also not enhanced (within a precision of 10%), suggesting that this molecule is not a precursor of the reddish chromophores. The NH_3 abundance at 380 mbar varies highly with latitude and longitude, a possible consequence of the active jovian meteorology. At the resolution of our observations (~8000 km), the NH_3 humidity at this altitude ranges between 15 and 100% throughout the available data set. Above the cloud tops, the NH_3 mixing ratio in the 240-mbar region reaches a maximum near 15 deg-18 degS and decreases by a factor of ~40 at latitudes 30 deg-35 degS. This variation is not correlated with the 200-mbar temperature. It can be explained by a decrease of the eddy mixing coefficient near 240 mbar from ~4000 to <=400 cm^2 sec^-1 between the two latitude ranges. The PH_3 mixing ratio near 580 mbar lies between 1.7 and 2.6 x 10^-7 in the observed regions. At all longitudes, PH_3 varies smoothly with latitude, decreasing by ~30% from 10 deg to 35 degS. This variation may also reflect a decrease in the strength of the eddy mixing near 580 mbar or at deeper levels in the atmosphere.

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