Dynamical properties of Mars water ice clouds and their interactions with atmospheric dust and radiation

A fully coupled zonally-averaged one-dimensional time marching model of the Martian atmosphere is discussed. The model incorporates interactively radiation transfer, microphysics and eddy transport of both mineral and volatile aerosols. It is shown that nonlinear feedback caused by water ice clouds may result in quick (with a timescale of several days) reconfiguration of dust vertical distribution and thermal profile. Given different initial conditions, aerosols distribution and temperatures may equilibrate to different steady states. This might give a clue to understanding of the interannual variability of the seasonal temperature trend on Mars, particularly near aphelion. (C) 1999 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.