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| Titel |
Venus' Clouds as Inferred from the Phase Curves Acquired by IR1 and IR2 on board Akatsuki |
| VerfasserIn |
T. Satoh, S. Ohtsuki, N. Iwagami, M. Ueno, K. Uemizu, M. Suzuki, G. L. Hashimoto, T. Sakanoi, Y. Kasaba, R. Nakamura, T. Imamura, M. Nakamura, T. Fukuhara, A. Yamazaki, M. Yamada |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2012
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| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 14 (2012) |
| Datensatznummer |
250071171
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| Zusammenfassung |
| We present phase curves for Venus in the 1-2 μm wavelength region, acquired with IR1 and
IR2 on board Akatsuki (February - March 2011). A large discrepancy with the
previously-published curves was found in the small phase angle range (0o-30o). Through
analysis by radiative-transfer computation, it was found that the visibility of larger (~1 μm or
larger) cloud particles was significantly higher than in the standard cloud model. Although
the cause is unknown, this may be related to the recently reported increase in the abundance
of SO2 in the upper atmosphere. It was also found that the cloud top is located at
~75 km and that 1-μm particles exist above the cloud, both of these results being
consistent with recent studies based on the Venus Express observations in 2006-2008.
Further monitoring, including photometry for phase curves, polarimetry for aerosol
properties, spectroscopy for SO2 abundance, and cloud opacity measurements in the
near-infrared windows, is required in order to understand the mechanism of this large-scale
change. |
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