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Aims: Several scientific landers and rovers have reached the Martian surface since the 1970s. Communication between the asset (i.e., lander or rover) and Mars orbiters or Earth antennas uses radio signals in UHF to X-band frequencies passing through the Mars’ ionosphere. It is consequently necessary to take into account electron density variation in the Mars’ ionosphere to correct the refraction of the signal transmitted. Methods: We developed a new empirical model of the Mars’ ionosphere called MoMo. It is based on the large database of Total Electron Content (TEC) derived from the subsurface mode of the Mars Express MARSIS radar. The model provides vertical TEC as a function of solar zenith angle, solar activity, solar longitude and location. For validation, the model is compared with Mars Express radio occultation data as well as with the numerical model IPIM (IRAP Plasmasphere-Ionosphere Model). Results: We discussed the output of the model in terms of climatology behaviour of the Mars’ ionosphere. The output of MoMo is then uses to quantify the impact of the Martian ionosphere for radio-science experiments. From our results, the effect is of the order of 10−3 mm s−1 in Doppler observables especially around sunrise and sunset. Consequently, this new model could be used to support the data analysis of any radio-science experiment and especially for present InSight RISE and futur ExoMars LARA instruments aiming at better understand the deep-interior of Mars.

The energy dissipation in a uniform vorticity flow, such as the flow in a precessing spheroid or the one associated with the earth's free core nutation, is mainly confined to the boundary layers. However, the thinness of the boundary layer renders it difficult to study the energy dissipation in the turbulent regime, either in laboratory experiments or through direct numerical simulations. Here, we use a local Cartesian model to study the energy dissipation in the boundary layer of a precessing sphere when the flow becomes turbulent, contrasting it with the laminar case. We compute the evolution of the boundary layer over time at individual co-latitudes based on direct numerical simulations using the computational fluid dynamics solver Nek5000. We then estimate the total global dissipation by summing up individual contributions. A comparison with known analytical results in the laminar case validates this approach. We briefly discuss the applications to the lunar and the earth's core cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An oscillation of about 6 years has been reported in Earth's fluid core motions, magnetic field, rotation, and crustal deformations. Recently, a 6-year cycle has also been detected in several climatic parameters (e.g., sea level, surface temperature, precipitation, land ice, land hydrology, and atmospheric angular momentum). Here we suggest that the 6-year oscillations detected in the Earth's deep interior, mantle rotation, and atmosphere are linked together, and that the core processes previously proposed as drivers of the 6-year cycle in the Earth's rotation, cause in addition the atmosphere to oscillate together with the mantle, inducing fluctuations in the climate system with similar periodicities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An oscillation of about 6 years has been reported in Earth's fluid core motions, magnetic field, rotation, and crustal deformations. Recently, a 6-year cycle has also been detected in several climatic parameters (e.g., sea level, surface temperature, precipitation, land ice, land hydrology, and atmospheric angular momentum). Here we suggest that the 6-year oscillations detected in the Earth's deep interior, mantle rotation, and atmosphere are linked together, and that the core processes previously proposed as drivers of the 6-year cycle in the Earth's rotation, cause in addition the atmosphere to oscillate together with the mantle, inducing fluctuations in the climate system with similar periodicities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As part of the payload of the 2016 ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) mission, the Nadir and Occultation for MArs Discovery (NOMAD) suite instrument has been observing the Martian atmosphere since March 2018. NOMAD is mainly dedicated to the study of trace atmospheric species taking advantage of a high-spectral resolution. We demonstrate that when NOMAD is observing in nadir mode, i.e., when the line-of-sight points to the centre of Mars, it can be also exploited to detect ice. In this study we present a method based on the investigation of nadir observations of the NOMAD infrared channel, acquired during Mars Years 34 and 35 (March 2018 to February 2021). We take advantage of the strong water ice absorption band at 2.7 µm by selecting the diffraction orders 167, 168, and 169. We derive the Frost and Clouds Index (FCI), which is a good proxy for ice mapping, and obtain latitudinal-seasonal maps for water ice clouds. FCI is sensitive to the Polar Hood clouds. Nevertheless, detections in the Aphelion Cloud Belt (ACB) are limited. This is consistent with previous observations showing different physical properties between the two main Martian atmospheric structures and making the ACB less detectable in the infrared. We hence derive the infrared nadir channel sensitivity limit for the detection of these clouds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We decompose the monthly global ocean bottom pressure (OBP) from GRACE(-FO) mass concentration solutions, with trends and seasonal harmonics removed from the signal, to extract 23 significant regional modes of variability. The 23 modes are analyzed and discussed considering sea-level anomalies (SLA), wind stress curl (WSC), and major climate indices. A total of two-thirds of the patterns correspond to extratropical regions and are substantially documented in other global or regional studies. Over the equatorial band, the identified modes are unprecedented, with an amplitude ranging between 0.5 and 1 cm. With smaller amplitude than extratropical patterns, they appear to be less correlated with the local SLA or WSC; yet they present significantly coherent dynamics. The Pacific Ocean modes show significant correlations with the Pacific decadal oscillation (PDO) and El Niño southern oscillation (ENSO). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews current knowledge about the Earth's core and the overlying deep mantle in terms of structure, chemical and mineralogical compositions, physical properties, and dynamics, using information from seismology, geophysics, and geochemistry. High-pressure experimental techniques that can help to interpret and understand observations of these properties and compositions in the deep interior are summarized. The paper also examines the consequences of core flows on global observations such as variations in Earth's rotation and orientation or variations in the Earth's magnetic field. Processes currently active at the core-mantle boundary and the various coupling mechanisms between the core and the mantle are discussed, together with some evidence from magnetic field observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observation of the variations in the Earth's rotation at time scales ranging from subdiurnal to multidecadal allows us to learn about its deep interior structure. We review all three types of motion of the Earth's rotation axis: polar motion (PM), length of day variations ( Δ LOD ) and nutations, with particular attention to how the combination of geodetic, magnetic and gravity observations provides insight into the dynamics of the liquid core, including its interactions with the mantle. Models of the Earth's PM are able to explain most of the observed signal with the exception of the so-called Markowitz wobble. In addition, whereas the quasi-six year oscillations (SYO) observed in both Δ LOD and PM can be explained as the result of Atmosphere, Oceans and Hydrosphere Forcing (AOH) for PM, this is not true for Δ LOD where the subtraction of the AOH only makes the signal more visible. This points to a missing—possibly common—interpretation related to deep interior dynamics, the latter being also the most likely explanation of other oscillations in Δ LOD on interannual timescales. Deep Earth's structure and dynamics also have an impact on the nutations reflected in the values of the Basic Earth Parameters (BEP). We give a brief review of recent works aiming to independently evaluate the BEP and their implications for the study of deep interior dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cause for the damping of the Earth's free core nutation (FCN) and the free inner core nutation eigenmodes has been a matter of debate since the earliest reliable estimations from nutation observations were made available. Numerical studies are difficult given the extreme values of some of the parameters associated with the Earth's fluid outer core, where important energy dissipation mechanisms can take place. We present a fully 3D numerical model for the FCN capable of describing accurately viscous and Ohmic dissipation processes taking place in the bulk of the fluid core as well as in the boundary layers. We find an asymptotic regime, appropriate for Earth's parameters, where viscous and Ohmic processes contribute to the total damping, with the dissipation taking place almost exclusively in the boundary layers. By matching the observed nutational damping, we infer an enhanced effective viscosity matching and validating methods from previous studies. We suggest that turbulence caused by the Earth's precession can be a source for the enhanced viscosity. Plain Language Summary: Gravitational pull from the Sun and the moon (tidal forces) cause small periodic changes in the orientation of the Earth's spin axis, which can be measured very precisely by using radiotelescope observations of very distant quasars around the sky. It turns out that there is a small time delay between the tidal force and the Earth's spin axis response indicating that there is some process inside the Earth that is dissipating energy. Here we perform a numerical simulation to see if there is energy being lost inside the fluid outer core of the Earth. We find that there is minimal energy lost in the bulk of the core and that most of the energy is being lost at the interface between the fluid core and the Earth's mantle. Previous studies have assumed without proper justification that energy dissipates only at the fluid‐solid interface. Thus our study validates such assumption. Key Points: We establish asymptotic scaling laws for the free core nutation (FCN)'s Ohmic and viscous dissipation in the fluid coreMost of the energy dissipation associated with the FCN takes place in the boundary layersOur work validates inferences from previous studies that assumed the flow in the outer core as a uniform vorticity flow [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]