In-Situ Chemical and Isotopic Measurements of the Atmosphere of Jupiter

Insights into both the detailed composition of Jupiter’s atmosphere and unexpected local meteorological phenomena were revealed by in-situ measurements from the Galileo Probe Neutral Mass Spectrometer taken on December 7, 1995. Measurements of the neutral atmospheric composition from a pressure of 0.5 bar to approximately 21 bar revealed the mixing ratios of the major species helium and hydrogen as well as numerous minor constituents including methane, water, ammonia, ethane, ethylene, propane, hydrogen sulfide, neon, argon, krypton, and xenon. This instrument measured the isotope ratios3He/4He, D/H, and13C/12C as well as the isotopes of neon, argon, krypton, and xenon. A summary is given of progress that has been made in refining preliminary estimates of the abundances of condensable volatiles and noble gases as a result of an ongoing laboratory study using a nearly identical engineering unit. The depletion of simple condensable species to depths well below their expected condensation levels is explained by a local downdraft in the region of the probe entry. The mass spectrometer data suggests that different species may recover at different depths and this may be due to lateral mixing of Jovian air.