All Physics Faculty Publications
Document Type
Article
Journal/Book Title/Conference
Geophysical Research Letters
Volume
28
Issue
9
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
Publication Date
5-2001
First Page
1899
Last Page
1902
Abstract
Two high‐precision CEDAR instruments, an OH Mesospheric Temperature Mapper (MTM) and a Na Temperature Lidar, have been used to investigate seasonal variability in the mid‐latitude temperature at ∼87 km altitude over the western USA. Here we report the observation of a large perturbation in mesospheric temperature that occurs shortly after the autumnal equinox in close association with the penetration of planetary‐wave energy from the troposphere into the mesosphere. This perturbation has been observed on three occasions and exhibits a departure of up to ∼25–30 K from the nominal seasonal trend during a disturbed period of ∼2 weeks. Such behavior represents a dramatic transient departure from the seasonal trend expected on the basis of current empirical models. These novel results coupled with a recent TIME‐GCM modeling study [Liu et al., 2000] provide important insight into the role of planetary waves in mesospheric variability during the equinox periods.
Recommended Citation
Taylor, M.J., W.R. Pendleton, Jr., H-L. Liu, C.Y. She, L.C. Gardner, R.G. Roble, and V. Vasoli, Large amplitude perturbations in mesospheric OH Meinel and 87-km Na lidar temperatures around the autumnal equinox, Geophys. Res. Lett., 28, 1899, 2001.
Comments
Published by the American Geophysical Union in Geophysical Research Letters.
http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2001/2000GL012682.shtml
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