Saturn's Tropospheric Composition and Clouds from Cassini/VIMS 4.6-5.1 m Nightside Spectroscopy

Leigh N. Fletcher , Kevin H. Baines , Thomas W. Momary (1) , Adam P. Showman (2) , Patrick G.J. Irwin , Glenn S. Orton (1) , Maarten Roos-Serote (3) , C. Merlet

1 CALTECH - California Institute of Technology
2 Department of Planetary Sciences [Tucson]
3 OAL - Lisbon Astronomical Observatory

► Saturn's spectrum contains a low -opacity window allowing us to study the atmosphere beneath the tropospheric hazes. ► Up welling dredges ammonia, aerosols and phosphine to high altitudes at Satrun's equator. ► Strong extra-trophical upwelling and storms occur in broad regions near jets at 41N and 25S. ► Satrun's upper tropospheric hazes vary seasonally, whereas deep clouds are more uniform. ► Gases and clouds measured at 5 m can be used to trace the circulation of Saturn's deep atmosphere.

Mots clés: Saturn; Atmospheres; Composition; Structure

Domaines: Planète et Univers [physics]

Leigh N. Fletcher, Kevin H. Baines, Thomas W. Momary, Adam P. Showman, Patrick G.J. Irwin, et al.. Saturn's Tropospheric Composition and Clouds from Cassini/VIMS 4.6-5.1 m Nightside Spectroscopy. Icarus, 2011, 214 (2), pp.510. ⟨10.1016/j.icarus.2011.06.006⟩. ⟨hal-00786878⟩