Statistical analysis of Curiosity data shows no evidence for a strong seasonal cycle of martian methane

Using Gaussian process regression to analyze the Martian surface methane Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS) data reported by Webster et al. (2018), we find that the TLS data, taken as a whole, do not indicate seasonal variability. Enrichment protocol CH4 data are consistent with either stochastic vari...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inIcarus (New York, N.Y. 1962) Vol. 336; p. 113407
Main Authors Gillen, Edward, Rimmer, Paul B., Catling, David C.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Elsevier Inc 15.01.2020
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Summary:Using Gaussian process regression to analyze the Martian surface methane Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS) data reported by Webster et al. (2018), we find that the TLS data, taken as a whole, do not indicate seasonal variability. Enrichment protocol CH4 data are consistent with either stochastic variation or a spread of periods without seasonal preference. •We analyze the Curiosity rover measurements of Martian surface methane using Gaussian Process regression.•We find that the Curiosity data, taken as a whole, are not statistically consistent with seasonal variability.•Enrichment protocol CH4 data are consistent with stochastic variation or a spread of periods without seasonal preference.
ISSN:0019-1035
1090-2643
DOI:10.1016/j.icarus.2019.113407