Phoenix Lidar Observations of the Cloud Topped Boundary Layer on Mars

Physics

Scientific paper

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0343 Planetary Atmospheres (5210, 5405, 5704), 3346 Planetary Meteorology (5445, 5739), 5405 Atmospheres (0343, 1060)

Scientific paper

The NASA Phoenix mission to Mars landed on 25 May 2008 and operated for five months. The LIDAR instrument on Phoenix observed water ice clouds in the atmosphere of Mars that were similar to cirrus clouds on Earth. Fall streaks in the cloud structure traced the precipitation of ice crystals toward the ground. Measurements of atmospheric dust indicated that the planetary boundary layer (PBL) on Mars was well mixed up to heights of 4 to 6 km by the summer daytime turbulence and convection. The water ice clouds were detected at the top of the PBL and near the ground each night in late summer after the air temperature started decreasing. The interpretation is that water is transported downward by precipitation at night, and then upward to the top of the PBL by turbulent mixing during the day. The clouds and precipitation act to confine water within the planetary boundary layer.

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