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Triplett CC, Li J, Collins RL, Lehmacher GA, Barjatya A, Fritts DC, Strelnikov B, Lübken FJ, Thurairajah B, Harvey VL, Hampton DL, Varney RH. Observations of Reduced Turbulence and Wave Activity in the Arctic Middle Atmosphere Following the January 2015 Sudden Stratospheric Warming. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. ATMOSPHERES : JGR 2018; 123:13259-13276. [PMID: 31187016 PMCID: PMC6557582 DOI: 10.1029/2018jd028788] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Measurements of turbulence and waves were made as part of the Mesosphere-Lower Thermosphere Turbulence Experiment (MTeX) on the night of 25-26 January 2015 at Poker Flat Research Range, Chatanika, Alaska (65°N, 147°W). Rocket-borne ionization gauge measurements revealed turbulence in the 70- to 88-km altitude region with energy dissipation rates between 0.1 and 24 mW/kg with an average value of 2.6 mW/kg. The eddy diffusion coefficient varied between 0.3 and 134 m2/s with an average value of 10 m2/s. Turbulence was detected around mesospheric inversion layers (MILs) in both the topside and bottomside of the MILs. These low levels of turbulence were measured after a minor sudden stratospheric warming when the circulation continued to be disturbed by planetary waves and winds remained weak in the stratosphere and mesosphere. Ground-based lidar measurements characterized the ensemble of inertia-gravity waves and monochromatic gravity waves. The ensemble of inertia-gravity waves had a specific potential energy of 0.8 J/kg over the 40- to 50-km altitude region, one of the lowest values recorded at Chatanika. The turbulence measurements coincided with the overturning of a 2.5-hr monochromatic gravity wave in a depth of 3 km at 85 km. The energy dissipation rates were estimated to be 3 mW/kg for the ensemble of waves and 18 mW/kg for the monochromatic wave. The MTeX observations reveal low levels of turbulence associated with low levels of gravity wave activity. In the light of other Arctic observations and model studies, these observations suggest that there may be reduced turbulence during disturbed winters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin C Triplett
- Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jintai Li
- Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA
| | - Richard L Collins
- Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA
- Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA
| | - Gerald A Lehmacher
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA
| | - Aroh Barjatya
- Physical Sciences Department, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, FL, USA
| | | | - Boris Strelnikov
- Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics, University of Rostock, Kühlungsborn, Germany
| | - Franz-Josef Lübken
- Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics, University of Rostock, Kühlungsborn, Germany
| | - Brentha Thurairajah
- Center for Space Science and Engineering Research, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - V Lynn Harvey
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Donald L Hampton
- Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA
| | - Roger H Varney
- Center for Geospace Studies, SRI International, Menlo Park, CA, USA
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Fritts DC, Laughman B, Wang L, Lund TS, Collins RL. Gravity Wave Dynamics in a Mesospheric Inversion Layer: 1. Reflection, Trapping, and Instability Dynamics. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. ATMOSPHERES : JGR 2018; 123:626-648. [PMID: 29576994 PMCID: PMC5856071 DOI: 10.1002/2017jd027440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2017] [Revised: 09/12/2017] [Accepted: 09/15/2017] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
An anelastic numerical model is employed to explore the dynamics of gravity waves (GWs) encountering a mesosphere inversion layer (MIL) having a moderate static stability enhancement and a layer of weaker static stability above. Instabilities occur within the MIL when the GW amplitude approaches that required for GW breaking due to compression of the vertical wavelength accompanying the increasing static stability. Thus, MILs can cause large-amplitude GWs to yield instabilities and turbulence below the altitude where they would otherwise arise. Smaller-amplitude GWs encountering a MIL do not lead to instability and turbulence but do exhibit partial reflection and transmission, and the transmission is a smaller fraction of the incident GW when instabilities and turbulence arise within the MIL. Additionally, greater GW transmission occurs for weaker MILs and for GWs having larger vertical wavelengths relative to the MIL depth and for lower GW intrinsic frequencies. These results imply similar dynamics for inversions due to other sources, including the tropopause inversion layer, the high stability capping the polar summer mesopause, and lower frequency GWs or tides having sufficient amplitudes to yield significant variations in stability at large and small vertical scales. MILs also imply much stronger reflections and less coherent GW propagation in environments having significant fine structure in the stability and velocity fields than in environments that are smoothly varying.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Thomas S. Lund
- Colorado Research Associates DivisionNorthWest Research AssociatesBoulderCOUSA
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Grygalashvyly M, Becker E, Sonnemann GR. Wave mixing effects on minor chemical constituents in the MLT region: Results from a global CTM driven by high-resolution dynamics. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011. [DOI: 10.1029/2010jd015518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Sankey D, Ren S, Polavarapu S, Rochon YJ, Nezlin Y, Beagley S. Impact of data assimilation filtering methods on the mesosphere. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007. [DOI: 10.1029/2007jd008885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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La Hoz C, Havnes O, Næsheim LI, Hysell DL. Observations and theories of Polar Mesospheric Summer Echoes at a Bragg wavelength of 16 cm. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2006. [DOI: 10.1029/2005jd006044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Lübken FJ. Temperatures, polar mesosphere summer echoes, and noctilucent clouds over Spitsbergen (78°N). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2004. [DOI: 10.1029/2003jd004247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Blix TA. Relations between small scale electron number density fluctuations, radar backscatter, and charged aerosol particles. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2003. [DOI: 10.1029/2002jd002430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Berger U. Icy particles in the summer mesopause region: Three-dimensional modeling of their environment and two-dimensional modeling of their transport. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2002. [DOI: 10.1029/2001ja000316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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