Preliminary Results of Venus Observations Between 8 and 13 Microns

Abstract

The emission spectrum of Venus has been observed between 750 and 1250 cm⁻¹ from the 61-inch Harvard Observatory telescope using a Michelson interferometer capable of resolving one wavenumber. A preliminary analysis confirms a broad absorption-like feature near 890 cm⁻¹. The 960 and 1060 cm⁻¹ CO₂ bands are weak, if observable at all. The 791 cm⁻¹ CO₂ Q branch seems to be stronger in the Venus spectra than in the lunar comparison spectrum. The measured brightness temperature of about 250K is slightly higher than most previous estimates.