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Originally published in Science Express on 17 February 2005
Science 11 March 2005:
Vol. 307. no. 5715, pp. 1581 - 1584
DOI: 10.1126/science.1109438
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Reports

Summer Evolution of the North Polar Cap of Mars as Observed by OMEGA/Mars Express

Y. Langevin,1* F. Poulet,1 J.-P. Bibring,1 B. Schmitt,2 S. Douté,2 B. Gondet1

The Observatoire pour la Minéralogie, l'Eau, les Glaces, et l'Activité (OMEGA) visible-infrared imaging spectrometer extensively observed regions of Mars with latitudes above 70°N in late 2004 (heliocentric longitude from Ls 93° to Ls 127°). The extent of water ice at the surface and the size of ice grains were monitored as a function of time. Bright, small-grained frost, which initially covered a large fraction of the polar cap, waned in favor of large-grained ice. In outlying regions, dominated by large-grained ice, the albedo increased over the period. Evaluating the dust content was model dependent. However, contamination of ice by dust was low.

1 Institut d'Astrophysique Spatiale, CNRS–Université Paris Sud, 91405 Orsay, France.
2 Laboratoire de Planétologie de Grenoble, CNRS–Université Joseph Fourier, 38400 Grenoble, France.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: yves.langevin{at}ias.u-psud.fr

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Mars North Polar Deposits: Stratigraphy, Age, and Geodynamical Response.
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Sulfates in the North Polar Region of Mars Detected by OMEGA/Mars Express.
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Science 307, 1584-1586
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Mars Surface Diversity as Revealed by the OMEGA/Mars Express Observations.
J.-P. Bibring, Y. Langevin, A. Gendrin, B. Gondet, F. Poulet, M. Berthe, A. Soufflot, R. Arvidson, N. Mangold, J. Mustard, et al. (2005)
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