High-Order harmonics of Thermal Tides observed in the atmosphere of Mars by the Pressure Sensor on the Insight lander

Thermal tides are atmospheric planetary-scale waves with periods that are harmonics of the solar day. In the Martian atmosphere thermal tides are known to be especially significant compared to any other known planet. Based on the data set of pressure timeseries produced by the InSight lander, which...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inarXiv.org
Main Authors Hernandez-Bernal, J, Spiga, A, get, F, Banfield, D
Format Paper Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Ithaca Cornell University Library, arXiv.org 28.08.2024
Subjects
Higher harmonics
Mars atmosphere
Mars dust
Mars landers
Physics - Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics
Physics - Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
Planetary evolution
Pressure sensors
Tides
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Summary:Thermal tides are atmospheric planetary-scale waves with periods that are harmonics of the solar day. In the Martian atmosphere thermal tides are known to be especially significant compared to any other known planet. Based on the data set of pressure timeseries produced by the InSight lander, which is unprecedented in terms of accuracy and temporal coverage, we investigate thermal tides on Mars and we find harmonics even beyond the number 24, which exceeds significantly the number of harmonics previously reported by other works. We explore comparatively the characteristics and seasonal evolution of tidal harmonics and find that even and odd harmonics exhibit some clearly differentiated trends that evolve seasonally and respond to dust events. High-order tidal harmonics with small amplitudes could transiently interfere constructively to produce meteorologically relevant patterns.
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.2408.15745