Probing Dust and Water in Martian Atmosphere with Far-Infrared Frequency Spacecraft Occultation

Airborne dust plays an active role in determining the thermal structure and chemical composition of the present-day atmosphere of Mars and possibly the planet's climate evolution over time through radiative-convective and cloud microphysics processes. Thus, accurate measurements of the distribution and variability of dust are required. Observations from the Mars Global Surveyor/Thermal Emission Spectrometer Mars Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter/Mars Climate Sounder and Mars Express/Fourier Transform Spectrometer and the Curiosity Rover have limited capability to measure dust. We show that spacecraft occultation of the Martian atmosphere at far-infrared frequencies between 1 and 10 THz can provide the needed global and temporal data on atmospheric dust by providing co-located measurements of temperature and dust opacity from the top of the atmosphere all the way down to the surface. In addition, spacecraft occultation by a small-satellite constellation could provide global measurements of the development of dust storms.