Titan's stratospheric zonal wind, temperature, and ethane abundance a year prior to Huygens insertion

Details Titan's stratospheric zonal wind, temperature, and ethane abundance a year prior to Huygens insertion Titan's stratospheric zonal wind, temperature, and ethane abundance a year prior to Huygens insertion

Nov 2005

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005georl..3222205k&link_type=abstract

Geophysical Research Letters, Volume 32, Issue 22, CiteID L22205

Physics

18

Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects: Titan, Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects: Instruments And Techniques, Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects: Comparative Planetology, Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets: Remote Sensing, Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets: Atmospheres (0343, 1060)

Scientific paper

Saturn's satellite, Titan, may have stratospheric winds up to ~210 m/s, circling Titan in ~1 terrestrial day compared to its 16-day rotation. Theoretical models explaining such super-rotating winds are not well constrained by observations of Titan or a similar slow rotator, Venus. We report measurements taken in December 2003 of zonal wind near Titan's equatorial region, including the Cassini Huygens probe entry latitude. Super-rotating prograde zonal winds of 190 +/- 90 m/s near 220 km altitude are found from Doppler-shifted C2H6 gas emission near 12 μm, confirming high wind velocity even near the equator. Stratospheric temperature constraints and ethane abundance (8 +/- 3 ppm) also are retrieved. Results are not inconsistent with earlier measurements and with recent Cassini CIRS results, but indicate possible variations between Titan's hemispheres. Differences in east and west C2H6 spectral line shapes can be accounted for by different vertical distributions of either C2H6 abundance or temperature or by unidentified dynamical effects.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

Titan's stratospheric zonal wind, temperature, and ethane abundance a year prior to Huygens insertion does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Titan's stratospheric zonal wind, temperature, and ethane abundance a year prior to Huygens insertion, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Titan's stratospheric zonal wind, temperature, and ethane abundance a year prior to Huygens insertion will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1657999