Planned Improvements to the Venus Global Reference Atmospheric Model

The Venus Global Reference Atmospheric Model (Venus-GRAM) is an engineering-level atmospheric model applicable for engineering design analyses, mission planning, and operational decision making. Missions to Venus have generated a wealth of atmospheric data, however, Venus-GRAM has not been updated since its development and release in 2005. GRAM upgrades and maintenance have depended on inconsistent and waning project-specific support. The NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) has agreed to provide funding support in Fiscal Year 2018 and 2019 to upgrade the GRAMs. This presentation will provide an overview of Venus-GRAM and the objectives, tasks, and milestones related to the GRAM upgrades.