Intergration of MGS observations of 2001 global dust storm on Mars

The monitoring of the 2001 global dust storm on Mars by Mars Global Surveyor has yielded an unprecedented wealth of data on the initiation and growth of a major dust event. The data include MOC daily global weather maps, MOC dust (visible) optical depth measurements, TES measurements of atmospheric temperature and 9- micron dust opacity, and MHSA measurements of middle atmosphere temperatures. Together these allow for the juxtaposition of temperature, and opacity fields with visual imagery to enable a more comprehensive assessment of the storm development. Known limitations of TES observations result in significant spatial gaps in data, especially at high latitudes and in regions with very high dust opacity. We supplement these opacity estimates with the MOC imagery to construct a detailed description of the initiation and growth of the dust event. Our goal is to produce the best possible description of the evolution of the column optical depth and regions of active dust lifting based on a synthesis of all available data. We are using these improved evolving opacity estimates as input into the NASA/NOAA Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM). We will present model results that relate the simulated circulation, atmospheric temperature and aerosol distribution to the available observations in an effort to better understand the underlying dynamics of the initiation and growth of the 2001 storm.