On the Relationship Between Dust Devil Radii and Heights

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

<p> The influence of dust devils on the martian atmosphere depends on their capacity to loft dust, which depends on their wind profiles and footprint on the martian surface, i.e., on their radii, ��. Previous work suggests the wind profile depends on a devil&rsquo;s thermodynamic efficiency, which scales with its height, &planckh;. However, the precise mechanisms that set a dust devil&rsquo;s radius have remained unclear. Combining previous work with simple assumptions about angular momentum conservation in dust devils predicts that �� &prop; &planckh; <sup> 1∕2 </sup> , and a model fit to observed radii and heights from a survey of martian dust devils using the Mars Express High Resolution Stereo Camera agrees reasonably well with this prediction. Other observational tests involving additional, statistically robust dust devil surveys and field measurements may further elucidate these relationships.</p>
Original languageAmerican English
JournalPhysics Faculty Publications and Presentations
StatePublished - 1 Mar 2020

Keywords

  • Mars
  • atmosphere — Mars
  • climate — Mars
  • surface

EGS Disciplines

  • Physics

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