The Fully Interactive Martian Dust Cycle Simulations by the GoMars Model

The dust cycle is a crucial component of the present-day Martian climate system. This study examines its multi-timescale variability using an optimized 50-year simulation with the fully interactive scheme from the Global Open Planetary Atmospheric Model for Mars (GoMars), a newly developed Mars General Circulation Model (MGCM). GoMars is able to reproduce the diurnal, seasonal, and interannual characteristics of the dust cycle in several key aspects, with high repeatability in diurnal and seasonal variations during non-global dust storm (non-GDS) years. The model’s “climatology” (non-GDS years ensemble mean) captures the seasonal pattern and magnitude of the vertical–meridional dust distribution, validated against the Mars Climate Database (MCD) and Mars Climate Sounder (MCS) observations. In the absence of direct observations, the GoMars-simulated near-surface wind stress lifting (WSL) flux is evaluated through comparisons with other MGCMs (e.g., MarsWRF), revealing consistent seasonal and spatial patterns. As for the diurnal cycle, the peak dust devil lifting (DDL) flux occurs at 12:00-13:00 local time, matching the Mars Pathfinder measurements. The model also successfully captures the intense dust devil activity in Amazonis, a region identified as a major dust devil hotspot based on observational data. In GDS years, GoMars effectively reproduces spontaneous GDSs, capturing their observed onset times, locations, and dust transport patterns as exhibited in specific Martian years. The model also simulates significant interannual variability, with irregular GDS intervals along with reasonable dust-atmosphere interactions.