Seasonal And Diurnal Variation Of The Middle Atmospheric Thermal Structure
L. Gkouvelis (Leonardos.Gkouvelis@Nasa.Gov), Nasa Postdoctoral Program, Nasa Ames Research Center,
Moffett Field, Ca, Usa, A. S. Brecht, Nasa Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Ca, Usa, R. J. Wilson, C.
E. Harman, M. A. Kahre Nasa Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Ca, Usa, T. Bertrand, Lesia, Paris
Observatory, France. A. Kling, Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, Moffett Field, Ca, Usa.
Introduction: The Martian Middle Atmosphere (~70
-140 Km) Climatology Is Greatly Influenced By The
Lower And Upper Atmosphere. A Variety Of Physical
Processes Connects And Perturbs The Middle Atmosphere Which Can Feed Back To Other Atmospheric
Regions (Solar Forcing, Gravity Waves, Planetary
Waves And Tides, Clouds, Dust Storms, Etc. [16], [10],
[17], [18], [19], [20], [25]).
Due To Observational Difficulties Of Those Atmospheric Layers (Too High For Remote Sensing Observations And Too Low For In-Situ Measurements) The Middle Atmosphere Remains The Least Explored Region
Despite Its Importance On The Overall Evolution Of The
Atmosphere. However, The Observations (Past And
Recent) That Have Been Collected Reveal The Middle
Atmosphere To Be A Highly Variable Region. The Unraveling Of The Complex Dynamics Within The Middle
Atmosphere Is Key To Understanding The Behavior Of
The Whole Atmosphere. It Has Been Proposed That The
Transport Of Water Vapor To The Upper Atmosphere That