Mars’ Water Cycle: Interpreting Phoenix Lander Observations with a General Circulation Model

Details Mars’ Water Cycle: Interpreting Phoenix Lander Observations with a General Circulation Model Mars’ Water Cycle: Interpreting Phoenix Lander Observations with a General Circulation Model

Dec 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009agufm.p54b..07k&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2009, abstract #P54B-07

Physics

[5405] Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets / Atmospheres, [6225] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Mars

Scientific paper

The water cycle is a key aspect of Mars’ current climate system. Critical components of the water cycle include the exchange of water between the surface and atmosphere (i.e., surface water sources and sinks), cloud formation/dissipation, and atmospheric transport. Observations acquired by instruments on the Phoenix Lander and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) provide unique insights into many aspects of the water cycle. The goal of this work is to interpret these data with the NASA Ames Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM) in order to increase our understanding of the role of atmospheric transport, surface/atmospheric interaction, and clouds in Mars’ water cycle. We will build upon MGCM studies that compare model results to Phoenix-observed surface pressure, near-surface temperatures, and observations of nighttime surface frosts [1] by addressing the following questions that have arisen from the Phoenix mission: 1.) What role do dynamics play in the variability of observed atmospheric water vapor during late spring through mid-summer; and 2.) What role do water ice clouds play in confining atmospheric water near the surface at high northern latitudes? The version of the MGCM used for this study (version 2.1.25) includes a sub-grid scale treatment of the north residual cap, a sophisticated cloud microphysics package, and an updated transport scheme. Model results indicate that dynamical processes produce variability in the column water vapor over the Phoenix landing site. This result is significant because it means that large water exchange rates with the regolith do not need to be invoked. However, the weather systems that produce this variability in the model are highly sensitive to the horizontal and vertical distribution of airborne dust. The altitude and particle sizes of simulated water ice clouds are consistent with those inferred from the lidar instrument on the Phoenix Lander. Model results support Whiteway et al.’s [2] findings that clouds could work to confine water near the surface at high northern latitudes during northern spring and summer. References: [1] Nelli, S.M. et al. (2009) Submitted to JGR-Planets. [2] Whiteway et al. (2009) Science, 325, 68-70.

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