Chemical constraints on the water and total oxygen abundances in the deep atmosphere of Jupiter

Recent observations of the global H2O mixing ratio in the Jovian troposphere have been interpreted as indicating a possible global depletion of water and of total oxygen in Jupiter's interior. The authors discuss the resulting implications for the abundances of important nonequilibrium trace gases that are mixed upward from Jupiter's interior. The calculations show that the observations of CO and the upper limit on SiH4 are incompatible with significant global water and total oxygen depletions in Jupiter's interior. Hence the observed low water vapor abundances must result from unexpected local condensation effects in the cloud-forming region rather than from planetary depletions in water and total oxygen.