Abstract
THE venusian atmosphere exhibits two global-scale circulation patterns: an east–west super-rotation at altitudes above 100km and below 70 km, and a solar-locked circulation between these heights, in which material rises on the dayside of the planet, flows around to the nightside and descends near the antisolar point (local midnight). The region at which these two flows interact (∼95 km) is difficult to study, and existing data1 are either in conflict or indicate long-term dynamical changes. Here we present high-resolution images of an oxygen airglow that arises during down-welling at ∼95 km altitude on the nightside of Venus. Oxygen atoms are formed by photolysis of CO2 on the sunlit hemisphere, and are then transported to the nightside, where they recombine during descent. The newly formed molecular oxygen emits radiation to produce the airglow. We observe localized, short-lived regions of emission and neighbouring dark areas, demonstrating the potential of such observations to constrain atmospheric dynamics at this little-studied and important altitude in the venusian mesosphere.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Clancy, R. T. & Muhleman, D. O. Icarus 89, 129–149 (1991).
Dickinson, R. E. & Ridley, E. C. Icarus 30, 163–178 (1977).
Fox, J. L. & Bougher, S. W. Space Sci. Rev. 55, 357–489 (1991).
Bougher, S. W., Gérard, J. C., Stewart, A. I. F. & Fesen, C. G. J. geophys. Res. 95, 6271–6284 (1990).
Yung, Y. E. & Demore, W. B. Icarus 51, 199–247 (1982).
Connes, P., Noxon, J. F., Traub, W. A. & Carleton, N. P. Astrophys. J. 233, L29–L32 (1979).
Lawrence, G. M., Barth, C. A. & Argabright, V. Science 195, 573–574 (1977).
Crisp, D. Icarus 67, 484–514 (1986).
Stewart, A. I. F. & Barth, C. A. Science 205, 59–62 (1979).
Stewart, A. I. F., Gérard, J.-C., Rusch, D. W. & Bougher, S. W. J. geophys. Res. 85, 7861–7870 (1980).
Meier, R. R., Anderson, D. E. & Stewart, A. I. F. Geophys. Res. Lett. 10, 214–217 (1983).
Phillips, J. L., Stewart, A. I. F. & Luhman, J. G. Geophys. Res. Lett. 13, 1047–1050 (1986).
Alexander, M. J., Stewart, A. I. F. & Solomon, S. C. Bull. Am. astr. Soc. 23, 1050 (1991).
Allen, D. A. Proc. Astr. Soc. Aust. 10 (in the press).
Gillingham, P. R. & Lankshear, A. F. Proc. SPIE 1235, 9–12 (1991).
Noxon, J. F., Traub, W. A., Carleton, N. P. & Connes, P. Astrophys. J. 207, 1025–1035 (1976).
Crisp, D., Allen, D. A., Grinspoon, D. H. & Pollack, J. B. Science 253, 1263–1266 (1991).
Bougher, S. W., Dickinson, R. E., Ridley, E. C. & Roble, R. G. Icarus 73, 545–573 (1988).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Alien, D., Crisp, D. & Meadows, V. Variable oxygen airglow on Venus as a probe of atmospheric dynamics. Nature 359, 516–519 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1038/359516a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/359516a0
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
