The Martian Neutral Atmosphere from the Radio Science Experiment MaRS on Mars Express

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The Radio Science Experiment MaRS on Mars Express is sounding the Martian atmosphere and ionosphere using the spacecraft radio signals at Xband and S-band in Earth occultation geometry. MaRS relies on the observation of the phase, amplitude, polarisation and propagation times of radio signals transmitted from the spacecraft and received on Earth. The signals are affected by the different dispersive media through which they propagate (atmospheres, ionospheres, interplanetary medium, solar corona), by gravitational influences of planets and by the classical Doppler shift resulting from the relative motion of spacecraft, Earth and Mars. A simultaneous and coherent dual-frequency downlink at X- and S-band via the Spacecraft's High Gain Antenna (HGA) is required to separate effects of dispersive media from the classical Doppler shift. The bending of the radio carrier ray paths in the Martian atmosphere prior to the occultation of the spacecraft by the planetary disc as seen from the Earth is used to derive vertical profiles of density, pressure and temperature. The bending is caused by atmospheric refractivity and vertical density and temperature profiles can be retrieved assuming hydrostatic equilibrium and ideal gas law. The elliptical orbit of Mars Express allows to investigate a large range of local times and locations and can therefore be used to study latitudinal, diurnal and seasonal variations. The data set retrieved since March 2004 is quite complementary to the Mars Global Surveyor profiles with regard to the local times and the geographical distribution of the measurements. This presentation will compare the MaRS results with model data and data from other Mars missions.

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