Martian Surface Temperatures

Physics

Scientific paper

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Scientific paper

The 8- to 13-μ thermal scans made of Mars in 1954 by Sinton and Strong are the best source of information available on the distribution of temperature over the disk. I have analyzed all these scans, normalizing to the center-of-disk temperature in the light areas of 290° K found by Sinton and Strong. The observed equatorial temperature distribution between sunrise and midafternoon can be reproduced by a solution of the standard heat-conduction equation for a homogeneous subsurface when current values for the planetary albedo and emissivity are employed. The temperature range in the bright areas is from 303 to 180° K with a thermal inertia of 0.004 to 0.005 cal cm-2 sec-½ deg-1 the thermal inertia of the dark areas is slightly larger. Mean particle sizes for the two areas are estimated from the thermal conductivities to be 20 to 40 μ and 100 to 300 μ, respectively. The latitudinal temperature gradient is in accord with the above model for northern latitudes, but in the south the temperatures are depressed, consistent with the presence of a polar cap of frozen carbon dioxide. At all latitudes, a major fraction of the atmospheric water vapor is expected to condense at night. The radio brightness temperatures observed at centimeter wavelengths are also consistent with these thermal properties.

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