The vertical cloud structure of Jupiter from 5 micron measurements

From 5-micron high-spatial-resolution images of Jupiter, flux-frequency histograms of the equatorial region show a trimodal distribution of brightness temperatures. Combined with limb-darkening measurements, a three-layer cloud model for Jupiter is developed. The highest, coldest clouds, apparently homogeneous and displaying relatively little limb darkening, cover the zones. These clouds are not present over the belts, allowing observational access to deeper regions. The belts appear heterogeneous: small, localized hot areas show enhanced limb darkening, while much of the belt is distinctly cooler and exhibits shallower limb darkening. These belt properties can be explained by a cool emitting layer superposed upon a hot, dense cloud deck.