marsrad (version 1.0.0)

marsrad-package: marsrad: Mars Solar Radiation

Description

A set of functions to calculate solar irradiance and insolation on Mars horizontal and inclined surfaces. Based on NASA Technical Memoranda 102299, 103623, 105216, 106321, and 106700, i.e. the canonical Mars solar radiation papers.

Package Information

Version

1.0.0

License

GPL-3

Website

https://georges.fyi/marsrad/

Author

Georges Labrèche

Affiliation

Tanagra Space

Depends

R (>= 2.10)

Citation

If you use this package in your research or publication, please cite the paper it was developed for:

Labrèche, G., & Cordes, F. (2020). Using a Rover's Active Suspension System as a 2-Axis Solar Tracker Mechanism. 15th International Symposium on Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Automation in Space (i-SAIRAS '20). https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/isairas2020fullpapers/pdf/5035.pdf

Links

Package website

https://georges.fyi/marsrad/

Package GitHub repository

https://github.com/georgeslabreche/marsrad

Author LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeslabreche/

Author website

https://georges.fyi

Author

Maintainer: Georges Labrèche (ORCID)

Details

The package provides three types of solar radiation calculations:

• Instantaneous irradiance (G_* functions) — Power per unit area at a specific moment

• Daily insolation (H_* functions) — Energy per unit area over one Martian sol

• Period insolation (I_* functions) — Energy per unit area over multiple sols

All calculations support both horizontal and inclined surfaces. The package includes functions for optimal tilt angle calculation, sunrise/sunset times, and atmospheric optical depth modeling.

References

Appelbaum, J., & Flood, D. J. (1989). Solar Radiation on Mars. NASA Technical Memorandum 102299. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19890018252

Appelbaum, J., & Flood, D. J. (1990). Solar radiation on Mars: Update 1990. NASA Technical Memorandum 103623. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19910005804

Appelbaum, J., & Flood, D. J. (1991). Solar radiation on Mars: Update 1991. NASA Technical Memorandum 105216. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19910023732

Appelbaum, J., Sherman, I., & Landis, G. A. (1993). Solar radiation on Mars: Stationary photovoltaic array. NASA Technical Memorandum 106321. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19940010257

Appelbaum, J., Flood, D. J., & Norambuena, M. (1994). Solar radiation on Mars: Tracking photovoltaic array. NASA Technical Memorandum 106700. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/19950004977

See Also

Labrèche, G. (2020). Exploiting the SherpaTT Rover Active Suspension System to Enable Optimal Solar Array Inclination and Orientation for Long Traverses in a Martian Environment. Master's Thesis, Luleå University of Technology. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:1413245

Examples

# Calculate horizontal irradiance at Viking 1 landing site on Ls 90 (northern summer solstice)
G_h(Ls = 90, phi = 22.48, longitude = -48, Ts = 12, tau = 0.5)

# Find optimal panel tilt angle for the same location and season
optimal_angle(Ls = 90, phi = 22.48)

# Calculate daily insolation on a horizontal surface
H_h(Ls = 90, phi = 22.48, longitude = -48, tau = 0.5)

# Calculate insolation over a 24-hour period on an inclined surface
I_i(Ls = 90, phi = 22.48, longitude = -48, tau = 0.5, Ts_start = 0,
    Ts_end = 24, beta = 25, gamma_c = 0)