Mesospheric Temperature Climatology at the USU/CASS Atmospheric Lidar Observatory (ALO)

Salt Lake Community College

The Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences (CASS) at Utah State University (USU) operates the ALO for the study of the middle atmosphere. Mesospheric observations between 45 and 90 km have been carried out on an "observe when possible" philosophy at night from 1993 to present. The location of ALO is unique as its mid-latitude location places it well within the Rocky Mountains which are a major orographic source for gravity waves. The lidar facility is located on the Utah State University campus, where it is very accessible to students. The relative observations from the lidar are reduced to provide absolute temperature profiles, which are important for understanding the physics and chemistry of the middle atmosphere. The temperature profiles were used to create a multi-year temperature climatology to examine secular, annual, seasonal variations, to compare with other temperature observations, and with modeled temperatures.