2011/02/09 by Lucyna Kedziora-Chudczer, Jeremy Bailey · 15 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astro and Planetary Science #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Atmosphere (unit) #Atmosphere of Jupiter #Atmospheric models #Grism #Jupiter (rocket family) #Planet #Radiative transfer #Spectral energy distribution #Spectral line #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #astro-ph.EP #astro-ph.SR
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2966.2011.18488.x
published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 414(2), 1483-1492 (Oxford University Press) · Accepted by MNRAS on the 7th February 2011
arxiv created 2011/02/09 · openalex publication_date 2011/03/24 · arxiv updated 2015/05/27 · openalex created_date 2019/06/27 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We have obtained long-slit, infrared spectra of Jupiter with the Anglo-Australian Telescope in the K and H bands at a resolving power of 2260. Using a line-by-line, radiative transfer model with the latest, improved spectral-line data for methane and ammonia, we derive a model of the zonal characteristics in the atmosphere of this giant planet. We fit our model to the spectra of the zones and belts visible at 2.1 μm using different distributions of cloud opacities. The modelled spectra for each region match observations remarkably well at the K band and in low-pressure regions at the H band. Our results for the upper deck cloud distribution are consistent with previous models fitted to low-resolution, grism spectra. The ability to obtain and model high-resolution planetary spectra, in order to search for weakly absorbing atmospheric constituents, can provide better constraints on the chemical composition of planetary atmospheres.