  Small convective vortices occur ubiquitously on Mars, frequently as dust
devils, and they produce detectable signals in meteorological data -- in
pressure, temperature, and wind speed and direction. In addition to being
important contributors to the martian dust budget, convective vortices may
serve as probes of the boundary layer, providing clues on convective
instability, boundary layer diurnal evolution, and surface-atmosphere
interactions. Using vortices as boundary layer probes requires a detailed
understanding of the link between their properties and occurrence rates and the
conditions that produce them. Fortunately, the growing cache of data from the
Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) instrument suite onboard the Mars
2020 Perseverance rover promises to elucidate these relationships. In this
study, we present a catalog of vortex detections from mission sols 90 through
179 to bolster our previous catalog based on sols 15 through 89. Consistent
with predictions, we find more vortex encounters during this second half of the
mission than from the first half. In addition to analyzing the pressure signals
from these vortex encounters, we also use a Gaussian process analysis to
recover contemporaneous temperature signals. By combining these signals with a
long-established thermodynamics model, we estimate heights of the vortices and
find some agreement with previous work and evidence for the diurnal growth and
decay of the martian boundary layer. We also discuss prospects for additional
boundary layer studies using martian vortex encounters.

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics