New determination of Jupiter’s vertical cloud and haze structure using dual viewing angle MUSE/VLT observations
4 affiliations
- 1Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics Department, University of Oxford , Sherrington Road, Oxford OX1 3PU ,
- 2Global Systems Institute, Mathematics and Statistics Department, University of Exeter , Laver Building, North Park Road, Exeter EX4 4QE ,
- 3Astera Institute , 1351 Ocean Avenue, Emeryville, CA 94608 ,
- 4California Institute of Technology , 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 ,
Abstract
Jupiter is a hugely varying and diverse planet, demonstrated through spectacular changes in the cloud top appearance. However, the cloud structures that contribute to this appearance are hard to determine and are not known with certainty. A lack of in situ observations and many unknown parameter values and numerous near-degenerate pairings within the parameter space for visible/near-infrared observations of the aerosol profiles makes the problem underconstrained. This work utilizes several methods to alleviate these issues. Fitting simultaneously to dual viewing angle VLT/MUSE observations, using a radiative transfer algorithm, provides greater constraint to the aerosol profile than fitting to a single viewing geometry alone. To reduce the degeneracy between parameter pairings in the model, we utilize an aerosol profile with a minimized number of variable parameters by predetermining these values wherever possible. We find two clouds are needed, with a main cloud and haze layer fixed at 1.4 and 0.2 bars, respectively, to successfully reproduce 6 yr of VLT/MUSE observations (2018–2023), including dual-angle observations of the Great Red Spot (GRS). We also retrieve an ammonia gas distribution across the disc similar to previously derived profiles, including the peak in deep volume mixing ratio at 5∘ N before a rapid depletion at 10∘ N. This cloud parametrization successfully reproduces spectra extracted from 40∘ N to 40∘ S across the disc of Jupiter. For all locations (including the GRS) we find the material responsible for colouring Jupiter to be located in the main cloud layer (1.4 bar).
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BibTeX
@article{alexander2026determination,
title = {{New determination of Jupiter’s vertical cloud and haze structure using dual viewing angle MUSE/VLT observations}},
author = {Charlotte L B Alexander and Patrick G J Irwin and Ashwin S Braude and Emma K Dahl},
journal = {Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1093/mnras/stag1936},
url = {https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/doi/10.1093/mnras/stag1936/8907352},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - New determination of Jupiter’s vertical cloud and haze structure using dual viewing angle MUSE/VLT observations
AU - Charlotte L B Alexander
AU - Patrick G J Irwin
AU - Ashwin S Braude
AU - Emma K Dahl
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/10
JO - Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
DO - 10.1093/mnras/stag1936
UR - https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/doi/10.1093/mnras/stag1936/8907352
AB - Jupiter is a hugely varying and diverse planet, demonstrated through spectacular changes in the cloud top appearance. However, the cloud structures that contribute to this appearance are hard to determine and are not known with certainty. A lack of in situ observations and many unknown parameter values and numerous near-degenerate pairings within the parameter space for visible/near-infrared observations of the aerosol profiles makes the problem underconstrained. This work utilizes several methods to alleviate these issues. Fitting simultaneously to dual viewing angle VLT/MUSE observations, using a radiative transfer algorithm, provides greater constraint to the aerosol profile than fitting to a single viewing geometry alone. To reduce the degeneracy between parameter pairings in the model, we utilize an aerosol profile with a minimized number of variable parameters by predetermining these values wherever possible. We find two clouds are needed, with a main cloud and haze layer fixed at 1.4 and 0.2 bars, respectively, to successfully reproduce 6 yr of VLT/MUSE observations (2018–2023), including dual-angle observations of the Great Red Spot (GRS). We also retrieve an ammonia gas distribution across the disc similar to previously derived profiles, including the peak in deep volume mixing ratio at 5^∘ N before a rapid depletion at 10^∘ N. This cloud parametrization successfully reproduces spectra extracted from 40^∘ N to 40^∘ S across the disc of Jupiter. For all locations (including the GRS) we find the material responsible for colouring Jupiter to be located in the main cloud layer (1.4 bar).
SN - 0035-8711
SN - 1365-2966
ER -