Planetary Atmospheres Research

牛津大学拥有欧洲领先的行星大气组，涵盖使命设计和支持、科学仪器开发、数据分析和解释的先进技术以及大气辐射和动力学的建模和理论。一个世界上任何地方都无法比拟的特殊优势是，综合了基本大气物理学方面的实验结果，从而可以对行星和地球进行比较研究。行星大气研究的滚动赠款已经支持这项工作20多年了。它巩固了上面定义的广泛领域，支持参与空间任务（对于一个大学团体来说，这在世界上也是独一无二的），从水星到土星跨越经典的太阳系，包括对几乎没有空气的物体（包括月球和彗星）上的挥发物的研究。该小组在促成欧洲金星快车使命方面发挥了重要的科学和实验作用，这是20多年来第一个探索地球邻近世界大气层的轨道飞行器。我们现在有一个跨学科科学家的角色，涉及使命设计和仪器协调，以最大限度地提高科学回报，以及数据分析和解释，重点是在低层大气中产生能量平衡的改进模型;验证和改进大气环流模型;使用简单的物理测量约束生成新的气候演变模型;并与其他类地行星进行比较研究。火星的大气和气候仍然是一个高度优先的活动领域，包括设计和建造目前在火星周围运行的火星气候探测器。我们为命运多舛的Beagle 2号使命提供了现场风传感器，并正在参与欧空局ExoMars使命气象仪器的开发。我们操作一些最复杂和最现实的火星大气数值环流模型，能够模拟当今火星天气的日常变化，并调查过去和未来的气候。正在进行的工作包括通过我们参与伽利略和卡西尼飞行任务，调查木星和土星以及太阳系中唯一具有厚大气层的卫星土卫六的结构、组成和动力学。对于这两项任务，我们都参与了红外仪器的设计和开发，对于卡西尼号，我们为光谱仪建造了焦平面和辐射冷却器，以提供高性能。特别是外行星的工作得到了地面观测以及实验室光谱和流体动力学实验方案的支持。我们与欧空局合作开发BepiColombo使命，并与英国工业界合作研究新的低成本火星和金星任务。我们与喷气推进实验室合作，正在建造一种新的仪器，Diviner，明年将在月球勘测轨道飞行器上发射，以绘制月球上的热环境和挥发物，特别是在美国宇航局正在考虑的极地地区，以及英国通过新的太空探索计划，作为下一个十年晚些时候载人基地的地点。我们正在为罗塞塔上的VIRTIS光谱仪开发模型和数据分析工具，这是我们与意大利、法国和德国的同事一起设计的。通过测量2014年到达67 P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko的彗星的红外辐射光谱，我们计划确定彗星的挥发性成分。2007年10月，由于最近设立了一个新的大学讲师一级的行星职位，该小组将增加第五名首席研究员，目前正在填补这一职位。我们要求总共10个PDRA和6个项目奖学金，以支持5名高级学者，加上2名技术人员，一名程序员/分析师，以及设备，消耗品和差旅费。

Oxford has the leading planetary atmospheres group in Europe, covering mission design and support, scientific instrument development, advanced techniques for data analysis and interpretation, and modelling and theory of atmospheric radiation and dynamics. A particular strength, unmatched anywhere in the world, is the synthesis of experimental results in terms of basic atmospheric physics in ways that permit comparative studies between the planets and the Earth. The rolling grant for Planetary Atmospheres Research has supported this work for more than 20 years. It consolidates the broad areas defined above, supports involvement in space missions that (again uniquely in the world, for a university group) span the classical Solar System from Mercury to Saturn, including work on volatiles on virtually airless bodies including the Moon and comets. The group had major scientific and experimental roles in instigating the European Venus Express mission, the first orbiter to explore the atmosphere of Earth's neighbouring world in over 20 years. We now have an Interdisciplinary Scientist role involving mission design and instrument coordination to maximise science return, and data analysis and interpretation that is focussed on producing improved models of the energy balance in the lower atmosphere; validating and improving general circulation models; generating new climate evolution models using simple physics constrained by measurements; and comparative studies in all three areas with the other terrestrial planets. The atmosphere and climate of Mars continues to be a high priority area of activity, including the design and construction of the Mars Climate Sounder now operating around Mars. We contributed the in situ wind sensor for the ill-fated Beagle 2 mission, and are participating in the development of meteorological instrumentation for ESA's ExoMars mission. We operate some of the most sophisticated and realistic numerical circulation models of the Martian atmosphere, capable of simulating the day-to-day variations in Martian weather for the present day, and of investigating past and future climates. Ongoing work includes investigations of the structure, composition and dynamics of Jupiter and Saturn, and the only moon in the Solar System with a thick atmosphere, Titan, through our involvement in the Galileo and Cassini missions. For both missions we had a role in designing and developing the infrared instruments, and for Cassini we built the focal plane and radiative cooler for the spectrometer that delivers its high performance. The outer planet work, in particular, is supported by ground-based observations, and a programme of laboratory spectroscopic and fluid dynamical experiments. We worked with ESA on the development of the BepiColombo mission and with UK industry on studies of new low-cost missions to Mars and Venus. We, in collaboration with JPL, are building a new instrument, Diviner, for launch next year on Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter to map the thermal environment and volatiles on the Moon, especially in the polar regions that are being considered by NASA, and the UK through the new space exploration initiative, as the site for a manned base later in the next decade. We are developing models and data analysis tools for the VIRTIS spectrometer on Rosetta, which we designed with colleagues in Italy, France and Germany. By measuring the spectra of infrared emissions from the coma on arrival at 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014 we plan to determine the volatile composition of the comet. A fifth lead researcher will be added to the group in October 2007 as the result of the recent creation of a new planetary post at University Lecturer level, now in the process of being filled. We are requesting a total of 10 PDRAs and 6 project studentships to support the 5 senior academics, plus 2 technical staff, one programmer/analyst, and equipment, consumables, and travel costs.