[Previous] | [Session 65] | [Next]
A. A. Simon-Miller (Cornell), B. Conrath (GSFC), P. Gierasch (Cornell), R. Beebe (NMSU)
Although many techniques have failed to reveal direct evidence of water on Jupiter, re-analysis of Voyager IRIS spectra in the 40 to 50-micron range yield new results. Composite spectra have been produced from these data in the past, providing a globally averaged signal with no evidence for the presence of water ice. Several individual spectra, however, show evidence of a broad water ice feature near 226 cm-1 (44 microns) at select locations on the planet. These spectra correspond to regions where deep convective activity is suspected to occur, providing evidence for lifting water from deeper layers of the atmosphere. Spectral modeling reveals that very little water ice, with near-unity visible optical depth, is required to produce the infrared spectral features that are seen. The ice feature is seen in absorption, indicating that the ice layer is at a pressure of 500 mbar or less.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: simon@astrosun.tn.cornell.edu