CO+ first-negative band emission: A tracer for CO in the Martian upper atmosphere

Abstract

Context. Recently, the Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) on board the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) satellite observed CO+ first-negative band limb emission in the Martian upper atmosphere. Aims. We aim to explore the photochemical processes in the Martian upper atmosphere, which drive this band emission. Methods. A photochemical model was developed to study the excitation processes of CO+ first-negative band emission (B2Σ+ → X2Σ+) in the upper atmosphere of Mars. The number density profiles of CO2 and CO from two different models, namely, Mars Climate Database (MCD) and Mars Global Ionosphere-Thermosphere (MGIT), were used to determine the limb intensity of this band emission. Results. By increasing the CO density by a factor of 4 and 8 in MCD and MGIT models, respectively, the modelled CO+ first-negative band limb intensity profile is found to be consistent with the IUVS/MAVEN observation. In this case, the intensity of this band emission is significantly determined by the ionisation of CO by solar photons and photoelectrons, and the role of dissociative ionisation of CO2 is negligible. Conclusions. Since CO is the major source of the CO+(B2Σ+), we suggest that the observed CO+ first-negative band emission intensity can be used to retrieve the CO density in the Martian upper atmosphere for the altitudes above 150 km.