Knowledge Bank

Recently the vertical distribution of Jovian ethane was determined from ultra-high resolution, infrared heterodyne measurements of individual stratospheric lines near 12 $microns1$. Due to uncertainties in the temperature dependence of some of the molecular parameters, we undertook an investigation of the spectrum of ethane under $H2$-broadened conditions. These spectra were recorded at Doppler-limited resolving power with the GSFC tuneable diode laser spectrometer. Using our new low-temperature absorption cell we have studied the temperature dependence of this line broadening over the range 95-220K. We will discuss this experiment, the basic results, and the implications for the retrieved Jovian vertical ethane distribution.