A TRANSMISSION SPECTRUM OF TITAN'S NORTH POLAR ATMOSPHERE FROM A SPECULAR REFLECTION OF THE SUN
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Barnes-2013-A TRANSMISSION SPECT.pdf
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Author(s)
Barnes, Jason W.
Clark, Roger N.
Sotin, Christophe
Rodriguez, Sebastien
Brown, Robert H.
Buratti, Bonnie J.
Baines, Kevin H.
Nicholson, Philip D.
Adamkovics, Mate
Appere, Thomas
Date Issued
October 2013
Journal
The Astrophysical Journal
Publisher
IOP Publishing
Citation
Barnes, Jason W., Roger N. Clark, Christophe Sotin, Mate Adamkovics, Thomas Appere, Sebastien Rodriguez, Jason M. Soderblom, et al. “A TRANSMISSION SPECTRUM OF TITAN’S NORTH POLAR ATMOSPHERE FROM A SPECULAR REFLECTION OF THE SUN.” The Astrophysical Journal 777, no. 2 (October 24, 2013): 161. © 2013 The American Astronomical Society
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Cassini/VIMS T85 observations of a solar specular reflection off of Kivu Lacus (87[° over .]4N 241[° over .]1E) provide an empirical transmission spectrum of Titan's atmosphere. Because this observation was acquired from short range (33,000 km), its intensity makes it visible within the 2.0, 2.7, and 2.8 μm atmospheric windows in addition to the 5 μm window where all previous specular reflections have been seen. The resulting measurement of the total one-way normal atmospheric optical depth (corresponding to haze scattering plus haze and gas absorption) provides strong empirical constraints on radiative transfer models. Using those models, we find that the total haze column abundance in our observation is 20% higher than the Huygens equatorial value. Ours is the first measurement in the 2-5 μm wavelength range that probes all the way to the surface in Titan's arctic, where the vast majority of surface liquids are located. The specular technique complements other probes of atmospheric properties such as solar occultations and the direct measurements from Huygens. In breaking the degeneracy between surface and atmospheric absorptions, our measured optical depths will help to drive future calculations of deconvolved surface albedo spectra.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637x/777/2/161
