Dust particle size, shape, and optical depth during the 2018/MY34 Martian Global Dust Storm retrieved by MSL Curiosity rover navigation cameras

TL;DR

This study uses MSL Curiosity rover navigation camera data to analyze dust particle size, shape, and optical depth during the 2018 Martian global dust storm, providing new independent retrievals of aerosol properties.

Contribution

It introduces an iterative radiative transfer retrieval method to characterize aerosol particle properties during a Martian global dust storm, enhancing understanding of atmospheric dust characteristics.

Findings

Determined dust particle size and shape during the storm.

Constrained aerosol optical depth and phase function.

Provided independent aerosol property retrievals.

Abstract

Martian planet-encircling dust storms or global dust storms (GDS), resulting from the combined influence of local and regional storms, are uncommon aperiodic phenomena: with an average frequency of approximately one every 3-4 MY, they produce a substantial rise in the atmospheric dust loading that lasts from weeks to months and have a significant impact on the atmospheric properties, energy budget, and global circulation. During the 2018/MY34 global dust storm, initiated at L_S = 185$^\circ$ (30-31 May 2018), an intensive atmospheric science campaign was carried out by the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover to monitor the environmental parameters at Gale Crater. We contribute to previous studies with independent retrievals to constrain the dust opacity and characterise the aerosol particle properties, including: size, shape and single scattering phase function. An iterative radiative transfer retrieval procedure was implemented to determine the aerosol parameters that best fit the angular distribution of sky radiance at forward and backward scattering regions observed by MSL Navigation Cameras (Navcams) during the 2018/MY34 GDS.