Alexander Berk (Spectral Sciences, Inc.), Lawrence Bernstein (Spectral Sciences, Inc.), James Duff (Spectral Sciences, Inc.)
Keywords:
Abstract:
At last year’s AMOS conference we described modifications made to MODTRAN5® in order to make it more generally applicable to arbitrary planetary atmospheres. It was then used to compare to a wide variety of spectral data for Neptune, spanning the UV through far-IR spectral regime, ~0.4-200 µm. At this year’s meeting, we describe our continuing efforts along these lines, and apply an upgraded version to Saturn, providing similar data comparisons over a broad wavelength region. The primary upgrades include an input option to automatically generate the pressure-altitude profile from the hydrostatic equation, development of a molecular band model parameter database based on the isotopic abundances of Saturn, and the addition of continua spectral data, such as H2-CH4 and CH4-CH4 dimer absorption coefficients. Clouds and haze, which are highly variable and play a dominant role in the radiation transfer in Saturn’s atmosphere, provide a good test of MODTRAN®’s capability to treat these complications.
Date of Conference: September 16-19, 2008
Track: satellite imaging, sensor system