Upgrades to the MAVEN Echelle Data Reduction Pipeline: New Calibration Standard and Improved Faint Emission Detection Algorithm at Lyman-α | CU Experts

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission instrument; suite includes an ultraviolet echelle spectrograph with high-spectral; resolution designed to resolve D and H Lyman-α emissions. The; high-spectral resolution mode was previously characterized in the lab; and in the cruise phase to Mars and had been calibrated using; observations and models of interplanetary hydrogen Lyman-α emissions.; This work presents improved characterizations of the high-spectral; resolution mode using in-orbit observations that allow for more robust; detections of the faint D Lyman-α emission line. Additionally, the; instrument was re-calibrated using simultaneous and comparable; observations made with the Hubble Space Telescope high-spectral; resolution instrument. Comparisons to Lyman-α observations made with the; low-resolution UV channel on the spectrometer, that had been calibrated; with stars, showed consistency in the brightness values for measurements; obtained at similar observational conditions. The combined upgrades to; the faint-emission fitting and new calibration techniques of the MAVEN; echelle channel have resulted in an improved data-reduction pipeline; with favorable implications for the science utility of D and H Lyman-α; emissions.

Mayyasi M; Clarke JT; Bertaux J-L; Deighan J; Bhattacharyya D; Chaffin MS; Jain S; Schneider NM; Curry SM

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