Photochemical and radiation transport model for extensive use (PROTEUS)

Abstract

Abstract We introduce a new flexible one-dimensional photochemical model named Photochemical and RadiatiOn Transport model for Extensive USe (PROTEUS), which consists of a Python graphical user interface (GUI) program and Fortran 90 modules. PROTEUS is designed for adaptability to many planetary atmospheres, for flexibility to deal with thousands of or more chemical reactions with high efficiency, and for intuitive operation with GUI. Chemical reactions can be easily implemented into the Python GUI program in a simple string format, and users can intuitively select a planet and chemical reactions on GUI. Chemical reactions selected on GUI are automatically analyzed by string parsing functions in the Python GUI program, then applied to the Fortran 90 modules to simulate with the selected chemical reactions on a selected planet. We performed a benchmark test of PROTEUS to confirm its validity, by applying it to the Martian atmosphere and the Jovian ionosphere. PROTEUS can significantly save the time for those who need to develop a new photochemical model; users just need to write chemical reactions in the Python GUI program and just select them on GUI to run a new photochemical model. Graphical Abstract

Keywords

• Photochemical model
• Graphical user interface
• PROTEUS