Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2009
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009agufm.p14d..03f&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2009, abstract #P14D-03
Physics
[5704] Planetary Sciences: Fluid Planets / Atmospheres, [5709] Planetary Sciences: Fluid Planets / Composition, [6220] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Jupiter
Scientific paper
We present analysis of thermal-infrared imaging and spectroscopy of the impact site near the south polar region of Jupiter (see Orton et al., AGU 2009). Enhanced thermal emission was first detected on July 20 2009 in 7-25 micron imaging from the MIRSI instrument on NASA’s IRTF. These observations, just two rotations after the impact, indicated the localised, high-temperature thermal signature of the ejecta field, coincident with the location of high-altitude particulate debris observed in the near-IR and visible. The impact feature was most visible in the 9-11 micron range, suggestive of enhanced emission from hydrocarbons and ammonia gas in the lower stratosphere. Subsequent thermal imaging of the impact region reveals the radiative cooling of the impact site and the changing morphology due to the redistribution of material by Jupiter’s zonal and meridional wind field. We acquired Gemini-N/Michelle imaging on July 22, Gemini-S/TReCS imaging on July 24 and August 5 and 9, and an extensive campaign of VLT/VISIR imaging on July 24, 26 and August 5, 10, 15, 16, at which point (4 weeks after the impact) the thermal signature could no longer be reliably distinguished, even with sub-arcsecond diffraction-limited angular resolution. Tropospheric and stratospheric temperatures and aerosol opacity are derived via optimal estimation retrievals (Fletcher et al. 2009, Icarus, 200, p154). Enhancement of hydrocarbons and gaseous ammonia are determined via iterative forward modelling, aided by spectral observations obtained with the slit aligned east-west through the impact feature from Gemini-S/TReCS (July 24) and VLT/VISIR (July 26, August 12-13). Low-resolution N-band (8-13 microns) Gemini-S/TReCS spectra confirm the enhanced emission over a broad range of wavelengths; Q-band (17-25 micron) spectra are used to study upper tropospheric temperatures in the aftermath of the collision and the rate of radiative cooling. VLT/VISIR spectra provide higher spectral resolutions in narrow wavelength ranges near 8.02, 10.49, 11.31, 11.60, 12.24 and 13.36 microns, sensitive to NH3, CH4 and hydrocarbon emission features. Iterative forward modelling of these spectra will be used to deduce the unique chemical composition and the three-dimensional thermal structure of the impact site, compared with the ‘unperturbed’ atmosphere at the same latitude. * Fletcher is supported by an appointment to the NASA Postdoctoral Program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology, administered by Oak Ridge Associated Universities through a contract with NASA. We wish to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of the support staff at IRTF, VLT and Gemini.
de Pater Imke
Edwards Margo
Fisher Benji
Fletcher Leigh N.
Golisch William
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