Search Publications
Ethane aerosol phase evolution in Titan's atmosphere
Dartois, Emmanuel; Bauerecker, Sigurd
Strong experimental evidence is presented that the northern polar cloud observed in Titan's atmosphere by the Cassini orbiter (VIMS) was indeed composed of ethane aerosol as proposed by Griffith et al. [2006. Science 313, 1620-1622]. We report on the condensation and phase behavior of ethane aerosol under atmospheric conditions of Titan (145 hPa, …
Comparison of HIPWAC and Mars Express SPICAM observations of ozone on Mars 2006-2008 and variation from 1993 IRHS observations
Lefèvre, Franck; Fast, Kelly E.; Sonnabend, Guido +5 more
Ozone is a tracer of photochemistry in the atmosphere of Mars and an observable used to test predictions of photochemical models. We present a comparison of retrieved ozone abundances on Mars using ground-based infrared heterodyne measurements by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's Heterodyne Instrument for Planetary Wind And Composition (HIPWAC) a…
Analysis of thermal emission from the nightside of Venus at 1.51 and 1.55 µm
Carlson, R. W.; Erard, S.; Irwin, P. G. J. +7 more
We present radiative transfer modelling of thermal emission from the nightside of Venus in two 'spectral window' regions at 1.51 and 1.55 µm. The first discovery of these windows, reported by Erard et al. [Erard, S., Drossart, P., Piccioni, G., 2009. J. Geophys. Res. Planets 114, doi:10.1029/2008JE003116. E00B27], was achieved using a princi…
Comment on “Evidence of electrical activity on Titan drawn from the Schumann resonances sent by Huygens probe” by J.A. Morente, J.A. Portí, A. Salinas, E.A. Navarro [2008, Icarus, 195, 802-811]
Berthelier, J. J.; López-Moreno, J. J.; Hamelin, M. +4 more
Morente et al. [Morente, J.A., Portí, J.A., Salinas, A., Navarro, E.A., 2008. Icarus. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2008.02.004] have recently presented a new analysis of the Permittivity, Wave and Altimetry (PWA) measurements made during the descent of the Huygens Probe through the atmosphere of Titan. They claimed the identification of several Schumann r…
Appearance of Saturn’s F ring azimuthal channels for the anti-alignment configuration between the ring and Prometheus
Chavez, Carlos E.
In this article we explore the aspect of the F ring with respect to the anti-alignment configuration between the ring and Prometheus. We focus our attention on the shape of the F ring's azimuthal channels which were first reported by Porco et al. (Porco, C.C., Baker, E., Barbara, J., Beurle, K., Brahic, A., Burns, J.A., Charnoz, S., Cooper, N., Da…
Water ice crystallinity and grain sizes on Dione
Brown, R. H.; Buratti, B. J.; Jaumann, R. +3 more
Saturn's satellite Dione is becoming an increasingly important object in the outer Solar System, as evidence for its current activity accumulates. Infrared observations of the surface can provide clues to the history of the body and currently active processes. Using data from the Cassini Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS), we perform …
Rebuttal to “Comment on “Evidence of electrical activity on Titan drawn from the Schumann resonances sent by Huygens probe” by J.A. Morente, J.A. Portí, A. Salinas, and E.A. Navarro [2008, Icarus, 195, 802-811]”
Morente, Juan A.; Portí, Jorge A.; Navarro, Enrique A. +1 more
Hamelin et al. criticize some conclusions of our paper [Morente, J.A., Portí, J.A., Salinas, A., Navarro, E.A., 2008. Icarus 195, 802-811]. This rebuttal is our response to their criticism. In our view, their comments are contradictory and not based on scientific argument. Our paper presents a comprehensible methodology for extracting weak resonan…
MARSIS radar sounder observations in the vicinity of Ma'adim Vallis, Mars
White, Oliver L.; Stofan, Ellen R.; Heggy, Essam +6 more
The MARSIS radar experiment aboard the ESA Mars Express satellite has recorded several unusual reflections in the Ma'adim Vallis region of Mars. These reflections display a wide variety of morphologies which are very different from those of reflections seen beneath the Polar Layered Deposits, Medusae Fossae Formation and Dorsa Argentea Formation. …
No satellites detected around 21 Lutetia
Kulkarni, Shrinivas R.; Busch, Michael W.; Conrad, Al
The Asteroid 21 Lutetia is the target of a flyby by the Rosetta spacecraft in mid-2010. We observed Lutetia with the Keck adaptive-optics system, and searched for satellites. We find none, to a flux limit of 1/350 (Δ-mag = 6.4), corresponding to a size limit of roughly 6 km, at a separation of 0.15″ (3 primary radii or 0.006 Hill radii).
The timing of martian valley network activity: Constraints from buffered crater counting
Head, James W.; Fassett, Caleb I.
Valley networks, concentrations of dendritic channels that often suggest widespread pluvial and fluvial activity, have been cited as indicators that the climate of Mars differed significantly in the past from the present hyperarid cold desert conditions. Some researchers suggest that the change in climate was abrupt, while others favor a much more…