Evaluation and Analysis of Dust Storm Activity in Tianwen-1 Landing Area Based on the Moderate Resolution Imaging Camera Observations and Mars Daily Global Maps

Shaojie Qu; Bo Li; Jiang Zhang; Yi Wang; Chenfan Li; Yuzhou Zhu; Zongcheng Ling; Shengbo Chen

doi:10.3390/rs14010008

Remote Sensing (Dec 2021)

Evaluation and Analysis of Dust Storm Activity in Tianwen-1 Landing Area Based on the Moderate Resolution Imaging Camera Observations and Mars Daily Global Maps

Shaojie Qu,
Bo Li,
Jiang Zhang,
Yi Wang,
Chenfan Li,
Yuzhou Zhu,
Zongcheng Ling,
Shengbo Chen

Affiliations

Shaojie Qu: Beijing Institute of Spacecraft System Engineering, Beijing 100094, China
Bo Li: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264200, China
Jiang Zhang: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264200, China
Yi Wang: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264200, China
Chenfan Li: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264200, China
Yuzhou Zhu: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264200, China
Zongcheng Ling: Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai 264200, China
Shengbo Chen: College of Geoexploration Science and Technology, Jilin University, Changchun 130000, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14010008
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 14, no. 1
p. 8

Abstract

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The first Mars exploration mission from China (Tianwen-1) was launched on 23 July 2020 with the goal of “orbiting, landing, and roving”. The occurrence of dust storm activities is an important criterion of assessing atmospheric risk for the Tianwen-1 landing process. Dust storm activities from Mars Year (MY) 24 to MY32 in southern Utopia Planitia were identified. Most dust storms only appeared in one Mars Daily Global Map (MDGM), with a lifetime of less than or equal to solar longitude (Ls) = 0.5°. Only if the lifetime of a dust storm is greater than or equal to Ls = 1° can it reach the primary landing ellipse. From Ls = 0–50°, dust storms are mostly in the diffusion stage with a maximum speed of movement of 2479 km/Ls. Then, the speed gradually decreases to the minimum value of 368 km/Ls when the dust storm is in the dissipation stage. If a dust storm moves at an average speed of 750 km/Ls, the safe landing zone is a circle within a radius of 750 km centered on the primary landing ellipse. From March to May 2021, eight dust storms were identified in the Moderate Resolution Imaging Camera (MoRIC) mosaics. Because there was no dust storm activity in MoRIC mosaic on 13 May 2021, we concluded that there would be no dust storm in the primary landing ellipse on 15 May (MY36, Ls = 45.1°). Therefore, the landing time of the Tianwen-1 probe was finally determined as 15 May, which successfully landed in the south of the Utopia Planitia, and the in-situ investigation was carried out by the Zhurong Mars rover.

Published in Remote Sensing

ISSN: 2072-4292 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/remotesensing/

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