Laboratory simulation and theoretical modelling of the solid-state greenhouse effect

In contrast to rock and soil surface layers, which absorb and reflect incoming solar radiation immediately at the surface, ices are partially transparent in the visible spectral range, while they are opaque in the infrared. These properties are responsible for the so-called solid-state greenhouse effect, which may play an important role in the energy balance of icy surfaces in the solar system, like the polar caps of Mars or the icy satellites of the giant planets (e.g., Jupiter’s moon Europa). Within the scope of a project started at the Space Research Institute in Graz the solid-state greenhouse effect is investigated experimentally and theoretically. We performed a couple of experiments with diverse samples (snow, water–ice, glass beads, different compositions of ices including absorbing layers), which were irradiated under cryo-vacuum conditions by a solar simulator. In these experiments the temperature distribution and the light absorption inside the sample were measured. The instrumentation used for these experiments as well as first outputs and results from theoretical modelling will be presented.