Space instrumentation

Abstract:

Collisional parameters of H2O with CO2 are currently missing from international spectroscopic databases, although they are essential for accurate modeling of water vapor in CO2-rich planetary atmospheres. In this study, high-resolution infrared spectra of H2O broadened by CO2 were recorded using a Fourier Transform Spectrometer in the 1.18 and 2.34 µm spectral regions. CO2-collisional parameters for selected H2O transitions were derived through a multispectrum fitting procedure employing both Voigt and quadratic speed-dependent Voigt profiles. Furthermore, calculations based on the semi-classical Complex Robert-Bonamy-Ma formalism were performed to estimate CO2-broadened half-widths, line shifts, and their temperature dependencies across various atmospheric transparency windows. It results in a strong agreement between theoretical predictions and experimental data. Finally, the shared calculated linelist, obtained for a wide range of transitions, can be directly applied to radiative transfer modeling of atmospheres primarily composed of carbon dioxide

Abstract:

The Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS) onboard the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) spacecraft has been studying Mars' atmosphere since 2018. The sensitivity of the middle infrared channel (MIR) allows it to address many ardent topics and it is capable of improving and establishing upper limits for many trace species. In this work we present analysis of transmittance spectra in the 3332.5–3338.6 cm⁻¹ range with 30,000 resolution (λ∕Δλ), covering absorptions lines of three nitrogen-bearing species: ammonia (NH₃), hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and cyanoacetylene (HC₃N). According to existing models, all of those are not expected to be present in a CO₂-rich Martian atmosphere, but outgassing or unknown chemistry sources cannot be discounted. The upper limits of 14, 1.5 and 11 ppbv are obtained for NH₃, HCN and HC₃N from individual occultation measurements during the warm and dusty perihelion season of martian year 36. For the ammonia and hydrogen cyanide the upper limits are improved compared to previously published results. A search for cyanoacetylene on Mars is reported for the first time.

Abstract:

We present in this paper mid-infrared (5-8~$\mu$m) spectroscopy toward the massive young binary W3~IRS~5, using the EXES spectrometer in high-resolution mode ($R\sim$50,000) from the NASA Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). Many ($\sim$180) $\nu_2$=1--0 and ($\sim$90) $\nu_2$=2-1 absorption rovibrational transitions are identified. Two hot components over 500 K and one warm component of 190 K are identified through Gaussian fittings and rotation diagram analysis. Each component is linked to a CO component identified in the IRTF/iSHELL observations ($R$=88,100) through their kinematic and temperature characteristics. Revealed by the large scatter in the rotation diagram, opacity effects are important, and we adopt two curve-of-growth analyses, resulting in column densities of $\sim10^{19}$ cm$^{-2}$. In one analysis, the model assumes a foreground slab. The other assumes a circumstellar disk with an outward-decreasing temperature in the vertical direction. The disk model is favored because fewer geometry constraints are needed, although this model faces challenges as the internal heating source is unknown. We discuss the chemical abundances along the line of sight based on the CO-to-H$_2$O connection. In the hot gas, all oxygen not locked in CO resides in water. In the cold gas, we observe a substantial shortfall of oxygen and suggest that the potential carrier could be organics in solid ice.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 34 pages, 13 figures, and 14 tables. Comments are more than welcome