Science highlights from MAVEN/IUVS after two years in Mars Orbit
Abstract
The broad capabilities of the Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph on the MAVEN mission are enabling new science ranging from Mars' lower atmosphere up though the escaping corona. After two years in Mars orbit, the instrument has yielded insights on present-day processes at Mars including dayglow, nightglow, aurora, meteor showers, clouds, and solar-planetary interactions. In this presentation we will highlight several new discoveries in the mesosphere and below. First, spatial mapping of nitric oxide nightglow reveals regions of atmospheric downwelling necessitating substantial changes to global atmospheric circulation models. Second, a new high-spatial-resolution UV imaging mode allows detection of clouds from nadir to limb and their local time evolution, as well as unprecedented determinations of Mars' low-altitude ozone. Finally, IUVS has obtained hundreds of stellar occultation profiles probing atmospheric structure, composition, waves and tides.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2016
- Bibcode:
- 2016AGUFM.P24C..08S
- Keywords:
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- 3346 Planetary meteorology;
- ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSESDE: 6225 Mars;
- PLANETARY SCIENCES: SOLAR SYSTEM OBJECTSDE: 5405 Atmospheres;
- PLANETARY SCIENCES: SOLID SURFACE PLANETSDE: 5445 Meteorology;
- PLANETARY SCIENCES: SOLID SURFACE PLANETS