Photochemistry and evolution of Mars' atmosphere: A Viking perspective

Abstract

Viking measurements of the Martian upper atmosphere indicate thermospheric temperatures below 200°K, temperatures much colder than those implied by remote sensing experiments on Mariner 6, 7, and 9 and Mars 3. The variability in thermospheric temperature may reflect an important dynamical coupling of upper and lower regions of the Martian atmosphere. Absorption of extreme ultraviolet solar radiation can account for observed features of the ionosphere and provides an important source of fast N and O atoms which may escape the planet's gravitational field. Isotopic measurements of oxygen and nitrogen impose useful constraints on models for planetary evolution. It appears that the abundance of N2 in Mars' past atmosphere may have exceeded the abundance of CO2 in the present atmosphere and that the planet also has copious sources of H2O. The planet acquired its nitrogen atmosphere early in its history. The degassing rate for nitrogen in the present epoch must be less than the time-averaged degassing rate by at least a factor of 20.