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Published 1976 | public
Book Section - Chapter

Pioneer 10 and 11 and ground-based infrared data on Jupiter: The thermal structure and He-H_2 ratio

Abstract

Temperature profiles for low- and mid-latitude regions on Jupiter are obtained from Pioneer 10 and 11 and ground based infrared data. Temperatures at 1.0 bar are near 165°K and drop to 105-110°K near 0.10 bar, for an overlying thermal in version which reaches 133 - 143° K near 0.03 bar. The molar fraction of H_2 most consistent with the Pioneer data is 0.88 ± 0.06 (He/H_2 = 0.14 ± 0.08), conditional on the perfect validity of the model and lack of systematic errors in the data. The local effective temperatures of various regions range from 124°.2 to 127°.6K, consistent with the global average of 125° K in the model-independent results in the previous chapter. It is probable that the temperature profiles of various latitudes on the planet are quite similar and that differences in observed intensity reflect the presence or absence of an optically thick cloud near 0.70 bar.

Additional Information

© 1976 University of Arizona Press. The authors gratefully acknowledge the advice and support of G. Münch. This research is supported in part by Pioneer Project funds and by NASA grant NGL 05-002-003. One of the authors (GSO) is currently a NASA-NRC Resident Research Associate at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Additional details

Created:
August 22, 2023
Modified:
October 20, 2023