Abstract
The environmental conditions at Gale Crater during the first 1160 sols of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission are assessed using measurements taken by the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) on-board the MSL Curiosity rover. REMS is a suite of sensors developed to assess the environmental conditions along the rover traverse. In particular, REMS has been measuring atmospheric pressure, atmospheric and ground temperature, relative humidity, UV radiation flux and wind speed. Here we analyze processed data with the highest confidence possible of atmospheric pressure, atmospheric and ground temperature and relative humidity. In addition, we estimate the daily UV irradiation at the surface of Gale Crater using dust opacity values derived from the Mastcam instrument. REMS is still in operation, but it has already provided the most comprehensive coverage of surface environmental conditions recorded by a spacecraft landed on Mars.
Highlights
The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission was launched on November 26, 2011 and landed on the floor of Gale Crater (4.6°S, 137°E) on August 5, 2012
volume mixing ratio (VMR) values derived in spring and summer, when the diurnal maximum relative humidity (RH) is low, present higher uncertainties that VMR values derived in late fall and winter, when the diurnal maximum RH is the highest
Summary We have presented a brief summary of processed Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) measurements of atmospheric pressure, atmospheric and ground temperature and relative humidity to give an overview of the environmental conditions at Gale Crater
Summary
The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission was launched on November 26, 2011 and landed on the floor of Gale Crater (4.6°S, 137°E) on August 5, 2012. 1. The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station The REMS instrument includes 6 different sensors that measure atmospheric pressure (P), atmospheric relative humidity (RH), ground temperature (Tg), atmospheric temperature (Ta), UV radiation fluxes and horizontal wind speed (Gómez-Elvira et al, 2012, 2014). The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station The REMS instrument includes 6 different sensors that measure atmospheric pressure (P), atmospheric relative humidity (RH), ground temperature (Tg), atmospheric temperature (Ta), UV radiation fluxes and horizontal wind speed (Gómez-Elvira et al, 2012, 2014) The extended blocks allow for a much better data coverage of events of the time scale of minutes to hours, improving the probability of capturing transient phenomena such as dust devils and evening boundary layer oscillations
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