The upper Jovian atmosphere aerosol content determined from a satellite eclipse observation |
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| Authors: | Dale W Smith Thomas F Greene Richard W Shorthill |
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| Institution: | 1. University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA;2. Boeing Aerospace Company, Seattle, Washington 98124, USA |
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| Abstract: | The Galilean satellite eclipse technique for measuring the aerosol distribution in the upper Jovian atmosphere is described and applied using 30 color observations of the 13 May 1972 eclipse of Ganymede obtained with the 5-m Hale telescope. This event probes the South Temperate Zone. The observed aerosol lies above the visible cloud tops, is very tenuous and varies with altitude, increasing rapidly with downward passage through the tropopause. The aerosol extinction coefficient, κa (λ1.05 μm), is ～1.1 × 10?9 cm?1 in the lower stratosphere and ～1.1 × 10?8 cm?1 at the tropopause. The 1σ uncertainty in these values does not exceed 50% The observations require some aerosol above the tropopause but do not clearly determine its structure. The present analysis emphasizes an extended haze distribution, but the alternate possibility is not excluded that the stratospheric aerosol resides in a thin layer. The aerosol extinction increases with decreasing wavelength and indicates the particle radius to be ?0.2 μm. Larger radii are impossible. These overall results confirm Axel's (1972) suggestion of a small quantity of dust above the Jovian cloud tops and the optical depths are consistent with those required to explain the low uv albedo. |
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