Analysis of new atmospheric dust observations from Mars using global circulation model
Lead Research Organisation:
The Open University
Department Name: Physical Sciences
Abstract
This project provides the opportunity to work directly on preparing a novel analysis of data from the ESA/RosCosmos Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), due for launch in 2016. The same techniques will be used in the analysis of recent and ongoing observations of the Martian atmosphere from the Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) aboard NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. MCS provides an existing source of data, ensuring that some will be available from the start of the project, whatever the state of the TGO mission. Much MCS data has not yet been fully analysed and new results should be obtainable with this analysis. The lead supervisor is a Co-Investigator on both MCS and the NOMAD instrument aboard TGO and the co-supervisor is a Co-Principal Investigator on NOMAD. This ensures direct contact with both teams.
The project will employ a global circulation model of the Martian atmosphere, developed over many years in the UK. It will make use of a technique called data assimilation, the combination of observations with the model to achieve a consistent, time-evolving estimate of the atmospheric state. Attention will be focussed on the dust opacity of the atmosphere, since dust is a vital and variable component of the Martian climate system. Dust is both lifted and transported by the atmosphere and, in turn, absorbs radiation warming the atmosphere. A scheme to combine dust observations with the atmospheric model will be tested and prepared for future use with NOMAD and other instruments aboard TGO. At the same time, the scheme will be validated and used to analyse MCS data. The project will allow scope for improving the data assimilation technique already in use, or focussing on the extraction of scientific analyses from existing data and improving our knowledge of the Martian climate cycle.
The project will employ a global circulation model of the Martian atmosphere, developed over many years in the UK. It will make use of a technique called data assimilation, the combination of observations with the model to achieve a consistent, time-evolving estimate of the atmospheric state. Attention will be focussed on the dust opacity of the atmosphere, since dust is a vital and variable component of the Martian climate system. Dust is both lifted and transported by the atmosphere and, in turn, absorbs radiation warming the atmosphere. A scheme to combine dust observations with the atmospheric model will be tested and prepared for future use with NOMAD and other instruments aboard TGO. At the same time, the scheme will be validated and used to analyse MCS data. The project will allow scope for improving the data assimilation technique already in use, or focussing on the extraction of scientific analyses from existing data and improving our knowledge of the Martian climate cycle.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Stephen Lewis (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Paul Streeter (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ST/N50421X/1 | 01/10/2015 | 31/03/2021 | |||
| 1809332 | Studentship | ST/N50421X/1 | 01/10/2016 | 31/03/2020 | Paul Streeter |
| Description | Significant research outcomes were achieved via completion of a PhD thesis and publication of work in a peer-reviewed journal and in conference proceedings. The achievements were increased understanding of the martian atmosphere via data assimilation of orbital data into a numerical climate model. This helped elucidate the effects of Mars Global Dust storms on surface temperatures, with the novel result that they were found to increase; the effects of such storms on polar dynamics, which were found to be significant in modifying temperatures and winds but acted asymmetrically in each hemisphere; and the patterns of dust lifting and deposition over multiple martian years. Conducting such work and collaborating with experts from around the world helped to increase the knowledge base of the research group. Lastly, public outreach regarding especially the European Space Agency's ExoMars mission was an important outcome given the UK's significant role in the mission. |
| Exploitation Route | The work published in the PhD thesis is already being taken forward by the author in a new role as a postdoc in the same research group, with one publication based on this work currently under review in a journal. Modifications made to the numerical climate model of Mars and the data assimilation scheme are also now being used by the research group as a whole. The research performed on the effects of Mars dust storms on its climate also have relevance to study of dust aerosol on Earth. |
| Sectors | Environment,Other |
| Description | My research was part of that presented to the public at various outreach activities, most notably at the Royal Society's Summer Science Showcase in 2018 which had a delegation from our research group to explain to the public and schoolchildren the details of the ExoMars mission, which has significant UK involvement. There has been a great deal of interest from the press and general public in the mission and its findings, and the award allowing me to be part of the team helped contribute to that. The mission is ongoing and therefore expected to have ongoing cultural impact. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2018 |
| Sector | Other |
| Impact Types | Cultural |
| Description | Conference/Meeting Travel Subsistence Grant |
| Amount | £950 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Royal Astronomical Society |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2020 |
| End | 01/2020 |
| Description | Early Career Scientist Travel Award |
| Amount | £500 (GBP) |
| Organisation | The Aerosol Society |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2020 |
| End | 01/2020 |
| Description | Legacies Fund |
| Amount | £400 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Royal Meteorological Society |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2019 |
| End | 03/2019 |
| Title | Asymmetric impacts on Mars' polar vortices from an equinoctial Global Dust Storm |
| Description | The Asymmetric impacts on Mars' polar vortices from an equinoctial Global Dust Storm database is composed of reanalysis products combining past spacecraft observations with a state-of-the-art Mars Global Circulation Model (MGCM), and free-running simulations of the MGCM.
Spacecraft observations of column dust optical depth and temperature profiles from the Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) and temperature profiles from the Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS) on the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) are combined with an MGCM used at the Open University. The standard database includes key variables such as surface pressure, atmospheric temperature, radiative heating rates, wind speeds, column dust optical depth, and potential vorticity. Further details on this dataset can be found in the Polar_vortices_GDS_impacts_dataset_reference.pdf document. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | https://ordo.open.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Asymmetric_impacts_on_Mars_polar_vortices_from_an_equinocti... |
| Title | Surface warming during the 2018/MY 34 Mars Global Dust Storm |
| Description | The Surface warming during the 2018/MY 34 Mars Global Dust Storm database is composed of reanalysis products combining past spacecraft observations with a state-of-the-art Mars Global Circulation Model (MGCM), and free-running simulations of the MGCM. Spacecraft observations of column dust optical depth and temperature profiles from the Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) instrument on the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft are combined with an MGCM used at the Open University. The standard database includes 2-hourly output of key variables such as surface temperature, surface pressure, surface shortwave and longwave flux, temperature as a function of altitude, and column dust optical depth.Further details on this dataset can be found in the Surface_warming_2018_GDS_dataset_reference.pdf document included in this repository. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2019 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | https://ordo.open.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Surface_warming_during_the_2018_MY_34_Mars_Global_Dust_Stor... |
| Description | Seeking Life on Mars - Royal Society Summer Exhibition 2018 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was part of a team from the Open University which assisted in the "Seeking Life on Mars" stall at the 2018 Royal Society Summer Exhibition, organised by my colleague Dr James Holmes, which aimed to communicate the research being done by our group with the ESA ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter to the general public. We engaged with hundreds of members of the public during the seven day event, including schoolchildren, undergraduate students and members of the media. In particular many young people were interested in the Mars-related, planetary, and more broadly space-related research being done at the Open University. As a member of the ExoMars research group myself, part of the team working with NOMAD data (a spectrometer on the spacecraft), I was in a position to directly explain my own research with the instrument and mission. I worked six of the seven days that the stall was open. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/2018/summer-science-exhibition/exhibits/life-on... |
| Description | Talk for the Open University Astronomy Club on "Atmosphere of Mars and martian dust storms" |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I gave a talk on my research to the montly meeting of the Open University's Astronomy Club, an organisation of amateur astronomers and people interested in astronomy and space science. I gave a background on the history of Mars atmospheric research, talked about the atmosphere and dust storms, and related some of my own findings from my PhD work. The talk was well received and I got many interesting questions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | http://www.shindles.co.uk/ouastro/Downloads/Minutes/Secretarys%20report%202020.pdf?LMCL=IiX9H7 |
| Description | The Open University at 50 and the ExoMars Mission - Dynamic Earth Science Showcase 2019 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I manned a stall at the Science Showcase at Dynamic Earth, Edinburgh, as part of a broader team showcasing the broader research and teaching being done by the Open University in the year of its 50th anniversary. I specifically talked about the OU's space research, with a focus on Mars research (which I conduct) and the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter mission (I am part of the OU team). This involved speaking to members of the public, children, and several people in further or higher education potentially interested in the OU and its research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| URL | https://www.dynamicearth.co.uk/latest/blog/posts/2019/october/awesome-autumn-activities-at-dynamic-e... |
| Description | Workshop on using MCS daata at NASA-JPL |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | Visited NASA-JPL in Pasadena, California to attend small workshop on using data from the Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) instrument aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). This data has been key in my own research as I have been assimilating it into my research group's Mars Global Climate Model (MGCM), and this workshop was a great way to meet the MCS team, learn about the subtleties of the dataset, present my own work to the team, and discuss future collaborations. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |