Marco Giuranna

• PhD (Planetary Science)
• Researcher at National Institute of Astrophysics

Since the time of Mars Express orbit insertion the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer PFS has delivered thousands of infrared spectra of Mars observing its atmospheric evolution in the course of the seasons Due to wide spectral range and high spectral resolution the instrument is a powerful tool to study atmospheric trace gases and in particular water...

The first results of the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) orbiting the planet Mars are reviewed and discussed here, with reference to a set of studies being published elsewhere. An average global spectrum ranging from 200 to 8200 cm−1 is discussed by comparing it to the ISO SWS Martian spectrum and to the global synthetic spectrum computed usin...

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) for the Mars Express mission is an infrared spectrometer optimised for atmospheric studies. This instrument has a short wave (SW) channel that covers the spectral range from 1700 to (1.2–) and a long-wave (LW) channel that covers 250– (5.5–). Both channels have a uniform spectral resolution of . The instrume...

This work reports the first observations of the Martian atmosphere returned by the planetary Fourier spectrometer (PFS) on board of Mars express (MEX) satellite in the vicinity of the greatest volcanic domes of the planet. Two of the early MEX orbits have already covered the region of Olympus Mons and Ascraeus Mons. These measurements are very simi...

The Mars Express spacecraft has a highly inclined orbit around Mars and so has been able to observe the south pole of Mars in illuminated conditions at the end of the southern summer (Ls=330). Spectra from the planetary Fourier spectrometer (PFS) short wavelength (SW) channel were recorded over the permanent ice cap to study its composition in term...

Observations of water ice clouds and dust are among the main scientific goals of the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS), a payload instrument of the European Mars Express mission. We report some results, obtained in three orbits: 37, 41 and 68. The temperature profile, and dust and water ice cloud opacities are retrieved from the thermal infrared...

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) experiment on board the Mars Express mission has two channels covering the 1.2–5 μm (SWC) and the 5–50 μm (LWC). The Long Wavelength Channel (LWC) measures the thermal emission spectrum of Mars between 200 and 2000 cm−1 with a spectral resolution of 1.4 cm−1, in absence of apodisation. We present here the ca...

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) experiment on board the Mars Express mission has two channels covering the 1.2–5.5 μm short wavelength channel (SWC) and the 5.5–45 μm (LWC). The SWC measures part of the thermal emission spectrum and the solar reflected spectrum of Mars between 1700 and 8200 cm−1 with a spectral resolution of 1.3 cm−1, in a...

An algorithm for the scientific analysis of the data from the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) on the Mars Express mission is presented. The PFS is a Fourier interferometer, operating in the infrared spectral range. Spectra were computed from the atmospheric and surface conditions extracted from European Climate Dataset v3.1 (EMCD) assumed to b...

The evaluation of the planetary Fourier spectrometer performance at Mars is presented by comparing an average spectrum with the ISO spectrum published by Lellouch et al. [2000. Planet. Space Sci. 48, 1393.]. First, the average conditions of Mars atmosphere are compared, then the mixing ratios of the major gases are evaluated. Major and minor bands...

Temperature retrieval is the main scientific goal for the longwavelength channel of the PFS on Mars Express. It covers a spectral range 300 - 1500 cm-1 with spectral resolution 1.8 cm-1 and allows to retrieve a vertical temperature profile from the surface up to 50-55 km altitude. Seasonal and spatial variations of temperature profiles in polar reg...

We report a detection of methane in the martian atmosphere by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer onboard the Mars Express spacecraft. The global average methane mixing ratio is found to be 10 +/- 5 parts per billion by volume (ppbv). However, the mixing ratio varies between 0 and 30 ppbv over the planet. The source of methane could be either biogen...

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) for the Mars Express mission is optimised for atmospheric studies, covering the IR range of 1.2-45 μm in two channels. The apodised spectral resolution is 2 cm-1, while the sampling is 1 cm-1. The FOV is about 2° for the short wavelength (SW) channel and 4° for the long wavelength (LW) channel, corresponding...

Within its first orbits Mars Express has passed over Isidis Planitia and the Beagle 2 landing site. From these passes we have derived first estimates on the surface temperature for the likely landing site of Beagle 2 using in the Long Wavelength Channel (5 to 45 µm) of the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) on Mars Express. In our group the Berli...

Several dusty spectra from Mars measured by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) during the Mars - Express mission were selected. The measured data were analysed by taking into consideration the features of minerals known from modelling, literature and existing databases. The measured spectra were compared with simulations in which we used the...

Data acquired by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer in the thermal infrared region allow the computation of air vertical temperature profile in the indicative altitude range [0, 50] km above the surface. Being that MEX has an almost polar orbit, it is therefore possible to reconstruct a bidimensional thermal field along a given meridian. The corres...

The Long Wavelength Channel of the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer has a very good signal to noise ratio in the CO2 15 microns band. The high spectral resolution of PFS allows us also the identification of the Q -branches due to the different isotopic molecular combination of Carbon Dioxides. Q- branches due to O16 -C12-O16 (briefly 626 ) are well s...

PFS has observed several times both the north and the south Martian polar caps during the first Mars Express orbits. The PFS spectral resolution and spectral range covered allow identification of unambiguous polar ices features. Remote sensing of CO2 grain size, H2O content and dust content is then possible. The most important variables controlling...

The presented work is directly connected with measurements by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) during the present mission to Mars - "Mars Express". Several spectra of Mars in which the influence of dust looks negligible were selected from PFS measurements. The spectral regions where the influence of gaseous atmosphere is also not important...

Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) has two spectral channels, devoted to the thermal and solar reflected spectral range investigations. The first observations by PFS of the Northern hemisphere ,which includes the North pole, occurred at Ls= 342 (northern winter). Surface temperature alone the orbit shows that the CO2 ice polar cap, where the surf...

High spectral resolution observations of Mars by the PFS/Mars Express provide new insight into the atmospheric composition. Spectral features of atmospheric CO2 and its isotopes at 15, 4.3, 2.7, 1.4 mu m, CO at 4.7 and 2.35 mu m, and H2O at 40, 2.56, and 1.38 mu m as well as solar spectral features are clearly identified in the PFS spectra. HDO spe...

Several martian volcanoes have been observed during the first phase of measurements for the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer on the Mars Express mission. PFS is an infrared spectrometer covering the wavelength range from 1.2 to 45 mu m divided in two channels: SWC from 1 to 5 mu m and LWC from 5 to 45 mu m. Data from both the two channels are used to...

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer is an infrared spectrometer able to cover the wavelength range from 1.2 to 45 mu m divided in two channels: SWC from 1 to 5 mu m and LWC from 5 to 45 mu m. Analyzing the data measured in both channels during the first period of observations, we identified some spots on the surface where anomalies have been recorde...

The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) experiment is included in the scientific payload of the ESA Mars Express (MEX) mission to Mars. Its very wide spectral range (250-8200 cm-1) as well as its relatively high spectral resolution (1.38 cm-1) give to PFS unique capabilities to study the Martian atmosphere. We present here the first examples of ai...

The water ice cloud observation is one of the scientific goals of PFS. Presence and properties of the ice particles are identified from absorption features, observed in both spectral ranges of PFS. Being in the near perihelion condition, the temperature of the Martian atmosphere is pretty high and ice clouds exist only in some places, for example,...

The composition and the mechanisms of accumulation of ices over the Martian polar caps have been studied through the analysis of PFS/MEX observations. Circulation in the polar night is a result of complex dynamical processes, such as transient eddies and quasi-stazionary planetary waves, which force two distinct regional climates over the south pol...