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1.
In June 1985, two instrumented balloons were placed in the atmosphere of Venus as part of the VEGA mission. Each balloon traveled about 30 percent of the way around the planet at a float altitude near 54 kilometers. In situ sensors measured pressure, temperature, vertical wind velocity, cloud particle backscatter, ambient light level, and frequency of lightning. A ground-based network of 20 radio antennas tracked the balloons by very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) techniques to monitor the Venus winds. The history, organization, and principal characteristics of this international balloon experiment are described.  相似文献   

2.
The VEGA balloons made in situ measurements of pressure, temperature, vertical wind velocity, ambient light, frequency of lightning, and cloud particle backscatter. Both balloons encountered highly variable atmospheric conditions, with periods of intense vertical winds occurring sporadically throughout their flights. Downward winds as large as 3.5 meters per second occasionally forced the balloons to descend as much as 2.5 kilometers below their equilibrium float altitudes. Large variations, in pressure, temperature, ambient light level, and cloud particle backscatter (VEGA-1 only) correlated well during these excursions, indicating that these properties were strong functions of altitude in those parts of the middle cloud layer sampled by the balloons.  相似文献   

3.
Near-infrared images of the Venus night side show bright contrast features that move from east to west, in the direction of the cloud-top atmospheric superrotation. Recently acquired images of the Venus night side along with earlier spectroscopic observations allow identification of the mechanisms that produce these features, their level of formation, and the wind velocities at those levels. The features are detectable only at wavelengths near 1.74 and 2.3 micrometers, in narrow atmospheric windows between the CO(2) and H(2)O bands. The brightest features have brightness temperatures near 480 Kelvin, whereas the darkest features are more than 50 Kelvin cooler. Several factors suggest that this radiation is emitted by hot gases at altitudes below 35 kilometers in the Venus atmosphere. The feature contrasts are produced as this thermal radiation passes through a higher, cooler, atmospheric layer that has horizontal variations in transparency. The 6.5-day east-west rotation period of the features indicates that equatorial wind speeds are near 70 meters per second in this upper layer. Similar wind speeds have been measured by entry probes and balloons at altitudes between 50 and 55 kilometers in the middle cloud layer. The bright features indicate that there are partial clearings in this cloud deck. The presence of these clearings could decrease the efficiency of the atmospheric greenhouse that maintains the high surface temperatures on Venus.  相似文献   

4.
Both VEGA balloons encountered vertical winds with typical velocities of 1 to 2 meters per second. These values are consistent with those estimated from mixing length theory of thermal convection. However, small-scale temperature fluctuations for each balloon were sometimes larger than predicted. The approximate 6.5-kelvin difference in temperature consistently seen between VEGA-1 and VEGA-2 is probably due to synoptic or planetary-scale nonaxisymmetric disturbances that propagate westward with respect to the planet. There is also evidence from Doppler data for the existence of solar-fixed nonaxisymmetric motions that may be thermal tides. Surface topography may influence atmospheric motions experienced by the VEGA-2 balloon.  相似文献   

5.
The altitude profiles of temperature and pressure measured during the descent of the four Pioneer Venus probes show small contrast below the clouds but significant differences within the clouds at altitudes from 45 to 61 kilometers. At 60 kilometers, the probe which entered at 59.3 degrees north latitude sensed temperatures 25 K below those of the lower latitude probes, and a sizable difference persisted down to and slightly below the cloud base. It also sensed pressure below those of the other probes by as much as 49 millibars at a mean pressure of 200 millibars. The measured pressure differences are consistent with cyclostrophic balance of zonal winds ranging from 130 +/- 20 meters per second at 60 kilometers to 60 +/- 17 meters per second at 40 kilometers, with evidence in addition of a nonaxisymmetric component of the winds. The clouds were found to be 10 to 20 K warmer than the extended profiles of the lower atmosphere, and the middle cloud is convectively unstable. Both phenomena are attributed to the absorption of thermal radiation from below. Above the clouds, in the lower stratosphere, the lapse rate decreases abruptly to 3.5 K per kilometer, and a superimposed wave is evident. At 100 kilometers, the temperature is minimum, with a mean value of about 170 K.  相似文献   

6.
A global array of 20 radio observatories was used to measure the three-dimensional position and velocity of the two meteorological balloons that were injected into the equatorial region of the Venus atmosphere near Venus midnight by the VEGA spacecraft on 11 and 15 June 1985. Initial analysis of only radial velocities indicates that each balloon was blown westward about 11,500 kilometers (8,000 kilometers on the night side) by zonal winds with a mean speed of about 70 meters per second. Excursions of the data from a model of constant zonal velocity were generally less than 3 meters per second; however, a much larger variation was evident near the end of the flight of the second balloon. Consistent systematic trends in the residuals for both balloons indicate the possibility of a solar-fixed atmospheric feature. Rapid variations in balloon velocity were often detected within a single transmission (330 seconds); however, they may represent not only atmospheric motions but also self-induced aerodynamic motions of the balloon.  相似文献   

7.
8.
Thermal plasma quantities measured by, the retarding potential analyzer (RPA) are, together with companion Pioneer Venus measurements, the first in situ measurements of the Venus ionosphere. High ionospheric ion and electron temperatures imply significant solar wind heating of the ionosphere. Comparison of the measured altitude profiles of the dominant ions with an initial modlel indicates that the ionosphere is close to diffusive equilibrium. The ionopause height was observed to vary from 400 to 1000 kilometers in early orbits. The ionospheric particle pressure at the ionopause is apparently balanced at a solar zenith angle of about 70 degrees by the magnetic field pressure with little contribution from energetic solar wind particles. The measured ratio of ionospheric scale height to ionopause radius is consistent with that inferred from previously measured bow shock positions.  相似文献   

9.
The solar flux radiometer aboard the Pioneer Venus large probe operated successfully during its descent through the atmosphere of Venus. Upward, downward, and net fluxes from 0.4 to 1.0 micrometers were obtained at more than 390 levels between 185 millibars (at an altitude of approximately 61 kilometers) and the surface. Fluxes from 0.4 to 1.8 micrometers were also obtained between 185 millibars and about the level at which the pressure was 2 atmospheres. Data from 80 to 185 millibars should be available after additional decoding by the Deep Space Network. Upward and downward intensities in a narrower band from 0.59 to 0.66 micrometers were also obtained throughout the descent in order to constrain cloud properties. The measurements indicate three cloud regions above the 1.3-atmosphere level (at an altitude of approximately 49 kilometers) and a clear atmosphere beneath that level. At the 67 degrees solar zenith of the probe entry site, some 15 watts per square meter are absorbed at the surface by a dark ground, which implies that about 2 percent of the solar energy incident on the planet is absorbed at the ground.  相似文献   

10.
In this report the fluxes measured by the solar flux radiometer (LSFR) of the Pioneer Venus large probe are compared with calculations for model atmospheres. If the large particles of the middle and lower clouds are assumed to be sulfur, strong, short-wavelength absorption results in a net flux profile significantly different from the LSFR net flux measurements. Models in which the smallest particles are assumed to be sulfur gave flux profiles consistent with the measurements if an additional source of absorption is included in the upper cloud. The narrowband data from 0.590 to 0.665 micrometer indicate an absorption optical depth of about 0.05 below the cloud bottom. The broadband data imply that either this absorption extends over a considerable wavelength interval (as might be the case for dust) or that a very strong absorption band lies on one side of the narrowband filter (as suggested by early Venera 11 and Venera 12 reports). Thermal balance calculations based on the measured visible fluxes indicate high surface temperature for reasonable assumptions of cloud opacity and water vapor abundance. The lapse rate becomes convective within the middle cloud. For water mixing ratios of 2.0 x 10(-4) below the clouds we find a subadiabatic region extending from the cloud bottom to altitudes near 35 kilometers.  相似文献   

11.
Orbiter infrared measurements of the Venus atmosphere in the 60- to 140-kilometer region show very small diurnal temperature differences near the cloud tops, increasing somewhat at higher levels. The seasonal (that is, equator to pole) contrasts are an order of magnitude larger, and the temperatures unexpectedly increase with increasing latitude below 80 kilometers. An isothermal layer at least two scale heights in vertical extent is found near the 100-kilometer altitude, where the temperature is about 175 K. Structure is present in the cloud temperature maps on a range of spatial scales. The most striking is at high latitude, where contrasts of nearly 50 K are observed between a cold circumpolar band and the region near the pole itself.  相似文献   

12.
Winds in the lower atmosphere of Venus, inferred from three-dimensional radio interferometric tracking of the descents of the Pioneer day and north probes, are predominantly easterly with speeds of about 1 meter per second near the surface, 50 meters per second at the bottom of the clouds, and more than 200 meters per second within the densest, middle cloud layer. Between about 25 and 55 kilometers altitude the average flow was slanted equatorward, with superimposed wavelike motions and alternating layers of high and low shear.  相似文献   

13.
Ultraviolet images of Venus over a 3-month period show marked evolution of the planetary scale features in the cloud patterns. The dark horizontal Y feature recurs quasi-periodically, at intervals of about 4 days, but it has also been absent for periods of several weeks. Bow-shaped features observed in Pioneer Venus images are farther upstream from the subsolar point than those in Mariner 10 images.  相似文献   

14.
Voyager 2 radio occultation measurements of the Uranian atmosphere were obtained between 2 and 7 degrees south latitude. Initial atmospheric temperature profiles extend from pressures of 10 to 900 millibars over a height range of about 100 kilometers. Comparison of radio and infrared results yields mole fractions near the tropopause of 0.85 and 0.15 +/- 0.05 for molecular hydrogen and helium, respectively, if no other components are present; for this composition the tropopause is at about 52 kelvins and 110 millibars. Distinctive features in the signal intensity measurements for pressures above 900 millibars strongly favor model atmospheres that include a cloud deck of methane ice. Modeling of the intensity measurements for the cloud region and below indicates that the cloud base is near 1,300 millibars and 81 kelvins and yields an initial methane mole fraction of about 0.02 for the deep atmosphere. Scintillations in signal intensity indicate small-scale stucture throughout the stratosphere and upper troposphere. As judged from data obtained during occultation ingress, the ionosphere consists of a multilayer structure that includes two distinct layers at 2,000 and 3,500 kilometers above the 100-millibar level and an extended topside that may reach altitudes of 10,000 kilometers or more. Occultation measurements of the nine previously known rings at wavelengths of 3.6 and 13 centimeters show characteristic values of optical depth between about 0.8 and 8; the maxim value occurs in the outer region of the in ring, near its periapsis. Forward-scattered signals from this ring have properties that differ from those of any of Saturn's rings, and they are inconsistent with a discrete scattering object or local (three-dimensional) assemblies of orbiting objects. These signals suggest a new kdnd of planetary ring feature characterized by highly ordered cylindrical substructures of radial scale on the order of meters and azimuthal scale of kilometers or more. From radio data alone the mass of the Uranian system is GM(sys) = 5,794,547- 60 cubic kilometers per square second; from a combination of radio and optical navigation data the mass of Uranus alone is GM(u) = 5,793,939+/- 60 cubic kilometers per square second. From all available Voyager data, induding imaging radii, the mean uncompressed density of the five major satellites is 1.40+/- 0.07 grams per cubic centimeter; this value is consistent with a solar mix of material and apparently rules out a cometary origin of the satellites.  相似文献   

15.
Several photometric measurements of Venus made from the Pioneer Venus orbiter and probes indicate that solar near-ultraviolet radiation is being absorbed throughout much of the main cloud region, but little above the clouds or within the first one or two optical depths. Radiative transfer calculations were carried out to simulate both Pioneer Venus and ground-based data for a number of proposed cloud compositions. This comparison rules out models invoking nitrogen dioxide, meteoritic material, and volatile metals as the source of the ultraviolet absorption. Models involving either small ( approximately 1 micrometer) or large ( approximately 10 micrometers) sulfur particles have some serious difficulties, while ones invoking sulfur dioxide gas appear to be promising.  相似文献   

16.
The linear polarization of sunlight multiply scattered by the atmosphere, and cloud particles of Venus has been computed and compared with observations over the wavelength range from the ultraviolet to the infrared region. The following properties of the visible cloud layer are derived: the refractive index of the cloud particles is 1.45 +/- 0.02 at a wavelength of 0.55 micron, and there is an indication of a slight decrease in the value from the ultraviolet to the near-infrared region; the mean particle radius is very near 1 micron, and most of the particles are spherical; the cloud layer occurs high in the atmosphere where the pressure is about 50 millibars (equivalent to an altitude of approximately 20 kilometers on the earth). The results for the index of refraction eliminate the possibility that the visible clouds are composed of pure water or ice.  相似文献   

17.
Pioneer Venus ultraviolet spectra from the first 5 years of operation show a decline (by more than a factor of 10) in sulfur dioxide abundance at the cloud tops and in the amount of submicron haze above the clouds. At the time of the Pioneer Venus encounter, the values for both parameters greatly exceeded earlier upper limits. However, Venus had a similar appearance in the late 1950's, implying the episodic injection of sulfur dioxide possibly caused by episodic volcanism. The amount of haze in the Venus middle atmosphere is about ten times that found in Earth's stratosphere after the most recent major volcanic eruptions, and the thermal energy required for this injection on Venus is greater by about an order of magnitude than the largest of these recent Earth eruptions and about as large as the Krakatoa eruption of 1883. The episodic behavior of sulfur dioxide implies that steady-state models of the chemistry and dynamics of cloud-top regions may be of limited use.  相似文献   

18.
Ultraviolet spectroscopy of the Venus cloud tops reveals absorption features attributed to sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere above the cloud tops. Measurements of scattered sunlight at 2663 angstroms show evidence for horizontal and vertical inhomogeneities in cloud structure. Images of the planet at SO(2) absorption wavelengths show albedo features similar to those seen at 3650 angstroms from Mariner 10. Airglowv emissions are consistent with an exospheric temperatuire of approximately 275 K, and a night airglows emission has been detected, indicating the precipitation of energy into the dark thermosphere.  相似文献   

19.
Further results from the Venus orbiter radiometric temperature experiment (VORTEX) on the Pioneer orbiter are presented. These are used to characterize the three-dimensional temperature field, the cloud structure, and the dynamics of the 60-to 130-kilometer altitude region of the Venus atmosphere. One of the new discoveries is a "dipole" structure at high latitudes, with two hot spots rotating around the pole, surrounded by banks of cold cloud.  相似文献   

20.
Near-infrared images of Venus, obtained from a global network of ground-based observatories during January and February 1990, document the morphology and motions of the night-side near-infrared markings before, during, and after the Galileo Venus encounter. A dark cloud extended halfway around the planet at low latitudes (>+/-40 degrees ) and persisted throughout the observing program. It had a rotation period of 5.5 +/- 0.15 days. The remainder of this latitude band was characterized by small-scale (400 to 1000 kilometers) dark and bright markings with rotation periods of 7.4 +/- 1 days. The different rotation periods for the large dark cloud and the smaller markings suggests that they are produced at different altitudes. Mid-latitudes (+/-40 degrees to 60 degrees ) were usually occupied by bright east-west bands. The highest observable latitudes (+/-60 degrees to 70 degrees ) were always dark and featureless, indicating greater cloud opacity. Maps of the water vapor distribution show no evidence for large horizontal gradients in the lower atmosphere of Venus.  相似文献   

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