Assimilation impact of the temperature on the super-rotation obtained by cross-link radio occultation measurements of the Venus atmosphere

Abstract Impacts of temperature assimilation on the Venus atmosphere are investigated by the observing system simulation experiments assuming cross-link radio occultation measurements of the Venus atmosphere (CROVA). Synthetic temperature data are prepared by a Venusian general circulation model (VGCM) with 80% of the solar heating to produce a weaker super-rotation than the default model would. Observational points of radio occultation measurements are realistically determined by a pair of satellites with feasible orbits. Then the vertical temperature profiles in 40–90 km altitudes at those points are assimilated into the original VGCM where the faster super-rotation is reproduced. The results show that the three-dimensional structure of the true atmosphere could be significantly improved not only in temperature but also in horizontal winds, when temperature observations are available with more than 40 points per day using 3 small cube satellites for 30 days. It would be promising to plan CROVA mission for future.