EXPLANATION OF THE COLOR OF MARS BY THE SPECTRAL PROPERTIES OF ITS ATMOSPHERE,
Abstract
In the summer of 1954, the 50-inch reflector of the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory was used to obtain spectrograms of Mars, which allowed photometric comparison between the spectra of the surface details of Mars and the solar spectrum. The curves obtained show that the continent and seas of Mars have the same natural color. The observed color difference is due solely to the properties of the Martian atmosphere. Consequently, the albedo of Mars can be determined for different wavelengths. Apparently, the surface of Mars has a natural albedo of approximately 0.45, without any real difference in the visible spectrum, but the large atmospheric dust content in itself causes this neutral surface to appear bright red. The dependence of the optical thickness of Mars on the wavelength, calculated according to this hypothesis is shown.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1964
- Accession Number
- AD0610116
Entities
People
- N. A. Kozyrev
Organizations
- American Meteorological Society