HR: 0800h
AN: P41B-12 [Abstracts]
TI: Projects To Probe Titan's Surface Composition and Development of Atmospheric Removal Models for Cassini VIMS Data
AU: * Pitman, K M
EM: Karly.M.Pitman@jpl.nasa.gov
AF: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive,
Pasadena, CA 91109, United States
AU: Buratti, B J
EM: Bonnie.J.Buratti@jpl.nasa.gov
AF: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive,
Pasadena, CA 91109, United States
AU: Baines, K H
EM: Kevin.H.Baines@jpl.nasa.gov
AF: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive,
Pasadena, CA 91109, United States
AU: West, R A
EM: Robert.A.West@jpl.nasa.gov
AF: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive,
Pasadena, CA 91109, United States
AU: Wolff, M J
EM: wolff@spacescience.org
AF: Space Science Institute, 4750 Walnut Street Suite 205, Boulder, CO 80301, United States
AU: Brown, R H
EM: rhb@lpl.arizona.edu
AF: Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, 1629 E. University Blvd., Tucson, AZ
85721-0092, United States
AB:
In this work, we will describe recent projects performed by our group at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California
Institute of Technology involving I/F data of Titan's surface acquired by Cassini's Visual and Infrared Mapping
Spectrometer (VIMS), including the next stage of development of methods to de-gas and de-fog VIMS images.
VIMS I/F spectra include contributions from both surface and atmospheric signal; therefore, current spectral data
analysis necessarily focuses on portions of VIMS I/F spectra where atmospheric methane and scattering by haze
is at a minimum. However, atmospheric opacity clears enough between wavelengths of 1 and 2 microns to
provide strong potential to view complex landforms if a proper atmospheric correction can be applied. Plane-
parallel radiative transfer (RT) correction methods have been used successfully in surface-atmospheric
separation retrievals for Mars and offer some utility for VIMS observations of Titan that are away from the limb. In a
previous work (Pitman et al. 2007, LPSC XXXVIII, p. 1164), we determined which inputs to radiative transfer
models must be updated, given results from recent meetings and literature, and evaluated two plane-parallel RT
models (adding-doubling, discrete ordinates) to determine which is more easily customized for surface-
atmospheric separation of Titan. In this work, we report our progress on replacing Voyager with Cassini-Huygens
inputs and how these models currently compare. Work performed under contract to NASA and by appointment to
the NASA Postdoctoral Program (ORAU).
DE: 5405 Atmospheres (0343, 1060)
DE: 5470 Surface materials and properties
DE: 6281 Titan
DE: 6299 General or miscellaneous
SC: Planetary Sciences [P]
MN: 2007 Joint Assembly