We have used Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer therm
al emission measurements to derive the thermal inertia of the Martian surfa
ce at the similar to 100-km spatial scale. We have validated the use of nig
httime-only measurements to derive thermal inertia as well as the use of a
single wavelength band versus bolometric thermal emission measurements. We
have also reanalyzed the Viking Infrared Thermal Mapper data set in a simil
ar manner in order to allow a direct comparison between the two. Within the
uncertainties of the fit of the data to the model, and the uncertainties i
nherent in the model, the thermal inertia has not changed substantially in
the 21 years between the Viking and the MGS measurements. Although some dif
ferences are seen, they are most likely due to changes in albedo during the
intervening years or to residual effects of airborne dust that are not ful
ly accounted for in the thermal models. The thermal inertia values that we
derive, between about 24 and 800 J m(-2) s(-1/2) K-1, are thought to better
represent the actual thermal inertia of the Martian surface than previous
estimates.