Mars’ South Polar Hood as Observed by the Mars Climate Sounder

Details Mars’ South Polar Hood as Observed by the Mars Climate Sounder Mars’ South Polar Hood as Observed by the Mars Climate Sounder

Sep 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009dps....41.4411b&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #41, #44.11

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We have used observations from the Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) to investigate the south polar hood water ice clouds. The clouds form as a belt during Ls=10°-70° (phase 1) and Ls=100°-200° (phase 2). During phase 1, the cloud belt initially extends over a wide latitude range, between 30° and 75° S with a visible optical depth between 0.075 and 0.15, and by the end of this period the AM clouds have dissipated while in the PM there is still a distinct belt with lower opacity clouds around 60° S. During phase 2, the clouds first form as a partial band of low opacity clouds south of the Tharsis region, and eventually become continuous in longitude, first in the PM at about Ls=130° and then in the AM around Ls=145°, with a visible optical depth between 0.125 and 0.25. From about Ls=140°-200°, the PM belt lies about 15° further south than the AM belt. The cause of this latitude displacement was found to be tidally driven diurnal temperature differences. As the season progresses, the belt moves further poleward until it has receded completely. Causes of the belt disappearance between phase 1 and phase 2 are related to a temperature increase and a lack of water vapor available for condensation during that time. Cloud altitude profiles within the belt exhibit a distinct structure that is similar throughout the Ls range, however the AM and PM differ from each other, primarily due to tidal control of the condensation altitudes.

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