Snow Clouds and the CO2 Cycle on Mars
The present climate of Mars depends on a precarious equilibrium between wintertime deposition and summertime sublimation of carbon dioxide in the seasonal polar ice caps (~30% of the atmospheric mass). Past obliquity changes could have altered the polar energy balance, resulting in different climate regimes. I will present direct infrared observations of precipitating carbon dioxide clouds in the darkness of polar night, using radiometric data from the Mars Climate Sounder on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft. Snow clouds affect both the deposition process and the polar energy balance, which controls the existence and location of the perennial CO2 ice cap and, ultimately, global surface pressures and the stability of liquid water.
Planet Lunch talks are held 12:00 - 13:00 and are informal in nature. Bring your (planet) lunch and bring your questions.
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