Spatial Variations in the Altitude of the CH4 Homopause at Jupiter's Mid-to-high Latitudes, as Constrained from IRTF-TEXES Spectra

JA Sinclair, TK Greathouse, RS Giles… - The Planetary …, 2020 - iopscience.iop.org
The Planetary Science Journal, 2020iopscience.iop.org
We present an analysis of IRTF-TEXES spectra of Jupiter's mid-to-high latitudes in order to
test the hypothesis that the CH 4 homopause altitude is higher in Jupiter's auroral regions
compared to elsewhere on the planet. A family of photochemical models, based on Moses &
Poppe (2017), were computed with a range of CH 4 homopause altitudes. Adopting each
model in turn, the observed TEXES spectra of H 2 S (1), CH 4, and CH 3 emission measured
on 2019 April 16 and August 20 were inverted, the vertical temperature profile was allowed …
Abstract
We present an analysis of IRTF-TEXES spectra of Jupiter's mid-to-high latitudes in order to test the hypothesis that the CH 4 homopause altitude is higher in Jupiter's auroral regions compared to elsewhere on the planet. A family of photochemical models, based on Moses & Poppe (2017), were computed with a range of CH 4 homopause altitudes. Adopting each model in turn, the observed TEXES spectra of H 2 S (1), CH 4, and CH 3 emission measured on 2019 April 16 and August 20 were inverted, the vertical temperature profile was allowed to vary, and the quality of the fit to the spectra was used to discriminate between models. At latitudes equatorward of Jupiter's main auroral ovals (> 62 S,< 54 N, planetocentric), the observations were adequately fit assuming a homopause altitude lower than∼ 360 km (above 1 bar). At 62 N, inside the main auroral oval, we derived a CH 4 homopause altitude of
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