Abstract. We describe a set of two "new generation" general circulation models of the Martian atmosphere derived from the models we originally developed in the early 1990s. The two new models share the same physical parameterizations but use two complementary numerical methods to solve the atmospheric dynamic equations. The vertical resolution near the surface has been refined, and the vertical domain has been extended to above 80 km.These changes are accompanied by the inclusion of state-of-the-art parameterizations to better simulate the dynamical and physical processes nero' the surface (boundary layer scheme, subgrid-scale topography parameterization, etc.) and at high altitude (gravity wave drag). In addition, radiative transfer calculations and the representation of polar processes have been significantly improved. We present some examples of zonal-mean fields from simulations using the model at several seasons. One relatively novel aspect, previously introduced by Wilson [1997], is that around northern winter solstice the strong pole to pole diabatic forcing creates a quasi-global, angular-momentum conserving Hadley cell which has no terrestrial equivalent. Within such a cell the Coriolis forces accelerate the winter meridional flow toward the pole and induce a strong warming of the middle polar atmosphere down to 25 km. This winter polar warming had been observed but not properly modeled until recently. In fact, thermal inversions are generally predicted above one, and often both, poles m'ound 60-70 km. However, the Mars middle atmosphere above 40 km is found to be very model-sensitive and thus difficult to simulate accurately in the absence of observations.

A dust transport scheme has been developed for a general circulation model of the Martian atmosphere. This enables radiatively active dust transport, with the atmospheric state responding to changes in the dust distribution via atmospheric heating, as well as dust transport being determined by atmospheric conditions. The scheme includes dust lifting, advection by model winds, atmospheric mixing, and gravitational sedimentation. Parameterizations of lifting initiated by a) near-surface wind stress and b) convective vortices known as dust devils are considered. Two parameterizations are defined for each mechanism, and are first investigated offline using data previously output from the non-dust transporting model. The threshold-insensitive parameterizations predict some lifting over most regions, varying smoothly in space and time. The threshold-sensitive parameterizations predict lifting only during extreme atmospheric conditions (such as exceptionally strong winds) so lifting is rarer and more confined to specific regions and times. Wind stress lifting is predicted to peak during southern summer, largely between latitudes 15 • -35 • S, with maxima also in regions of strong slope winds or thermal contrast flows. These areas are consistent with observed storm onset regions and dark streak surface features. Dust devil lifting is also predicted to peak during southern summer, with a moderate peak during northern summer. The greatest dust devil lifting occurs in early afternoon, particularly in the Noachis, Arcadia/Amazonis, Sirenum and Thaumasia regions. Radiatively active dust transport experiments reveal strong positive feedbacks on lifting by near-surface wind stress, and negative feedbacks on lifting by dust devils.

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[1] Against a backdrop of intensive exploration of the Martian surface environment, intended to lead to human exploration, some aspects of the modern climate and the meteorology of Mars remain relatively unexplored. In particular, there is a need for detailed measurements of the vertical profiles of atmospheric temperature, water vapor, dust, and condensates to understand the intricately related processes upon which the surface conditions, and those encountered during descent by landers, depend. The most important of these missing data are accurate and extensive temperature measurements with high vertical resolution. The Mars Climate Sounder experiment on the 2005 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, described here, is the latest attempt to characterize the Martian atmosphere with the sort of coverage and precision achieved by terrestrial weather satellites. If successful, it is expected to lead to corresponding improvements in our understanding of meteorological phenomena and to enable improved general circulation models of the Martian atmosphere for climate studies on a range of timescales.

[1] The first Martian year and a half of observations by the Mars Climate Sounder aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has revealed new details of the thermal structure and distributions of dust and water ice in the atmosphere. The Martian atmosphere is shown in the observations by the Mars Climate Sounder to vary seasonally between two modes: a symmetrical equinoctial structure with middle atmosphere polar warming and a solstitial structure with an intense middle atmosphere polar warming overlying a deep winter polar vortex. The dust distribution, in particular, is more complex than appreciated before the advent of these high (∼5 km) vertical resolution observations, which extend from near the surface to above 80 km and yield 13 dayside and 13 nightside pole-to-pole cross sections each day. Among the new features noted is a persistent maximum in dust mass mixing ratio at 15-25 km above the surface (at least on the nightside) during northern spring and summer. The water ice distribution is very sensitive to the diurnal and seasonal variation of temperature and is a good tracer of the vertically propagating tide.

The Mars Climate Database (MCD) is a database of meteorological fields derived from General Circulation Model (GCM) numerical simulations [2,4] of the Martian atmosphere and validated using available observational data. The MCD includes complementary post-processing schemes such as high spatial resolution interpolation of environmental data and means of reconstructing the variability thereof.The GCM is developed at LMD (Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique, Paris, France) in collaboration with several teams in Europe: LATMOS (Laboratoire Atmosphères, Milieux, Observations Spatiales, Paris, France), the Open University (UK), the Oxford University (UK) and the Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia (Spain) with support from the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES).The MCD is freely distributed and intended to be useful and used in the framework of engineering applications as well as in the context of scientific studies which require accurate knowledge of the state of the Martian atmosphere.The Mars Climate Database (MCD) has over the years been distributed to more than 150 teams around the world. With the many improvements implemented in the GCM over the last few years, a new series of reference simulations have been run and compiled in a new version (version 5) of the Mars Climate Database, released in the first half of 2012. Recent improvements in the LMD GCMFor more than twenty years, our teams have joined forces to develop the most realistic GCM to accurately model the martian atmosphere and climate. It has now matured to the point of being a "Mars System Model" capable of simulating the CO2 cycle, the dust cycle, the water cycle, the release and transport of radon, water isotopes cycle, the martian thermosphere and ionosphere, etc.Ongoing efforts have been made to improve our GCM and key recent improvements over the last few years include:-Updated schemes for the upper atmosphere:an improved computation of thermal cooling rates, a better treatment of radiative transfer in the 15-um bands, an enhanced solar heating rate model and an improved molecular diffusion scheme have been implemented [3].

[1] Multiannual dust transport simulations have been performed using a Mars general circulation model containing a dust transport scheme which responds to changes in the atmospheric state. If the dust transport is ''radiatively active,'' the atmospheric state also responds to changes in the dust distribution. This paper examines the suspended dust distribution obtained using different lifting parameterizations, including an analysis of dust storms produced spontaneously during these simulations. The lifting mechanisms selected are lifting by (1) near-surface wind stress and (2) convective vortices known as dust devils. Each mechanism is separated into two types of parameterization: threshold-sensitive and -insensitive. The latter produce largely unrealistic annual dust cycles and storms, and no significant interannual variability. The threshold-sensitive parameterizations produce more realistic annual and interannual behavior, as well as storms with similarities to observed events, thus providing insight into how real Martian dust storms may develop. Simulations for which dust devil lifting dominates are too dusty during northern summer. This suggests either that a removal mechanism (such as dust scavenging by water ice) reduces opacities at this time or that dust devils are not the primary mechanism for storm production. Simulations for which near-surface wind stress lifting dominates produce the observed low opacities during northern spring/ summer, yet appear unable to produce realistic global storms without storm decay being prevented by the occurrence of large-scale positive feedbacks on further lifting. Simulated dust levels are generally linked closely to the seasonal state of the atmosphere, and no simulation produces the observed amount of interannual variability.

[1] A superrotating atmosphere with equatorial winds of $35 m s À1 is simulated using a simplified Venus general circulation model (GCM). The equatorial superrotation in the model atmosphere is maintained by barotropic instabilities in the midlatitude jets which transport angular momentum toward the equator. The midlatitude jets are maintained by the mean meridional circulation, and the momentum transporting waves are qualitatively similar to observed midlatitude waves; an equatorial Kelvin wave is also present in the atmosphere. The GCM is forced by linearized cooling and friction parameterizations, with hyperdiffusion and a polar Fourier filter to maintain numerical stability. Atmospheric superrotation is a robust feature of the model and is spontaneously produced without specific tuning. A strong meridional circulation develops in the form of a single Hadley cell, extending from the equator to the pole in both hemispheres, and from the surface to 50 km altitude. The zonal jets produced by this circulation reach 45 m s À1 at 60 km, with peak winds of 35 m s À1 at the equator. A warm pole and cold collar are also found in the GCM, caused by adiabatic warming in the mean meridional circulation. Wave frequencies and zonal wind speeds are smaller than in observations by cloud tracking but are consistent with a Doppler shifting by wind speeds in the generating region of each wave. Magnitudes of polar temperature anomalies are smaller than the observed features, suggesting dynamical processes alone may not be sufficient to maintain the large observed temperature contrasts at the magnitudes and periods found in this GCM.