Atmosphere of Mars and southern hemispheres. Mars's temperature difference greatly influences the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, because warmer air can contain more moisture. This, in turn, affects the production of ozone-destroying hydrogen radicals. In early 2016, Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) detected atomic oxygen in the atmosphere of Mars. This was the first time in forty years it was detected, the last time being the Viking and Mariner missions in the 1970s. Molecular nitrogen (N) is present in the atmosphere at 1.9%. Measurements by various robotic missions, and analyses of Martian meteorites, show that the atmosphere is enriched in
Jacchia Reference Atmosphere Jacchia Reference Atmosphere The Jacchia Reference Atmosphere is a reference atmospheric model that defines values for atmospheric temperature, density, pressure and other properties at altitudes from 90 to 2500 km. Unlike the more common US Standard Atmosphere and related models, the Jacchia model includes latitudinal, seasonal, geomagnetic, and solar effects, but must be supplemented with another model at lower altitudes. The model, first published in 1970 and updated in 1971 and 1977, is based on spacecraft drag data, and is primarily used in spacecraft modeling and related fields. A common assumption while using the Jacchia Model is that the atmosphere