Occurrence and characteristics of sporadic sodium layer observed by lidar at a mid-latitude location

Na lidar observations of SSL during the past 5 years at a mid-latitude location (Wuhan, China, 31°N, 114°E) are reported in this paper. From 26 SSL events detected in about 230 h of observation, an SSL occurrence rate of 1 event/9 h at our location was obtained. This result, combined with that reported by Nagasawa and Abo (Geophys. Res. Lett. 22 (1995) 263) at Tokyo, Japan, reveals that the SSL occurrence can be relatively frequent at some mid-latitude locations. The statistical analyses of main parameters for the 26 SSL events were made, and the results were compared with those previously reported. By examining the corresponding data from a nearby ionosonde, it was found that there was a fairly good correlation between SSL and Es. Of the 18 pairs of SSL and Es events checked, 15 of SSL were accompanied by Es, and 8 pairs of them were correlated within 1 h in time and within 5 km in altitude. From the analyses of observed perturbations during SSL development, the role of dynamic processes of atmosphere in the SSL formations were emphasized.     

Mesospheric bore formation from large-scale gravity wave perturbations observed by collocated all-sky OH imager and sodium lidar

On 9 October 2007, long-horizontal-wavelength gravity waves were observed for the first time to steepen and form mesospheric bores at the altitude of ～87 km, by an all-sky OH imager located at Fort Collins (41°N, 105°W), Colorado. The collocated sodium lidar simultaneously observed the presence of a temperature inversion layer as the ducting region. One mesospheric bore uniquely later evolved into a large-amplitude soliton-like perturbation. When the gravity wave and the associated soliton-like perturbation passed through the lidar beams, the lidar detected strong vertical disturbance at 90 km, indicating convective instability. A large cold front system recorded several hours before in the troposphere was aligned to phase fronts of these large gravity waves. For all of the 7 mesospheric bores observed over a 5 year period, we found a similar alignment with a cold front 1000–1500 km away as the likely source of these large-scale gravity waves.     

利用瑞利激光雷达和无线电探空仪观测数据对武汉上空重力波特性的研究

本文利用武汉大学的瑞利激光雷达的瑞利散射回波数据(30～65km)来研究武汉地区上空(30.5°N,114.4°E)重力波的活动规律和统计特性.通过对2003年12月到2005年3月观测的200h数据反演的密度进行处理分析,得到了重力波的一些个例特征,并提取垂直波长为2 km以上的重力波进行统计分析.结果表明,最可几的垂直波长是3～4 km和17～20 km,重力波振幅的月平均值在冬季有较大值,夏季值较小.与武汉2004年无线电探空仪的密度扰动提取到的重力波做比较,发现与瑞利激光雷达得到的重力波振幅的月平均值有很强的相关性,也是冬季值比较大,夏季值比较小.通过无线电探空仪的风场数据,本文还得到了急流的季节变化规律、最大风剪切年变化规律,发现急流和最大风剪切与激光雷达的重力波统计结果有很强的相关性.     

Occurrence and characteristics of sporadic K layer observed by lidar over Beijing,China

A double-laser-beam lidar was successfully developed in 2010 to measure the K layer over Yanqing County, Beijing(40.5°N, 116.2°E). Comprehensive statistical analyses of sporadic K(Ks) layer parameters were conducted using two years of lidar data, and the parameters of the Ks layers and their distribution obtained by the analyses are described. The seasonal distribution of Ks occurrence was obtained, with two maxima observed in January and July, respectively. The seasonal distributions of sporadic E(Es) occurrence over Beijing differ from those of Ks occurrence. However, good correlations between Es and Ks in case by case study were found. We also found that four Ks events with peak altitudes lower than 90 km were associated with large and sharp temperature increases in five comparative examples.     

Daytime lidar measurements of the sodium layer in China

正Metal layers are formed owing to the deposition of metal species, such as, Na, Fe, Ma, Si, Ca, and K, in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere region. The metal species come from the meteor ablations when meteors enter into the atmosphere (Plane, 1991). Among these species, Na can be easily detected by sodium lidar since it has enough abundance and large backward scattering cross-section. On the other hand, the chemical lifetime of the sodium layer is longer than     

Atmospheric temperature profiling by joint Raman,Rayleigh and Fe Boltzmann lidar measurements

Simultaneous and complete temperature profiles from near ground to about 100 km are essential for studying the dynamical coupling between different atmospheric layers. They are acquired by combining three different lidar techniques at Wuhan, China (30.5°N, 114.4°E). The atmospheric temperatures from about 3 to 25 km are calculated from the nitrogen molecule density profiles obtained from the N₂ vibrational Raman backscatter, while the atmospheric temperatures between 30 and ∼75 km are calculated by the standard Rayleigh scattering method. The temperatures in the 80–100 km altitude region are derived from the Fe Boltzmann technique. The temperature profiles measured by our lidar systems exhibit good agreement when compared with the radiosonde and satellite data, as well as the model. A Lomb–Scargle spectral analysis of the normalized temperature perturbations in the altitude range from 4 to 60 km shows that the spectral slopes of the vertical wave number spectra tended to −3 for large vertical wave numbers. This is consistent with the model predictions of saturated gravity wave spectra.     

Application of wavelet transformation to determine wavelengths and phase velocities of gravity waves observed by lidar measurements

During the last two decades, important advances have been made in the investigation of gravity waves. However, more efforts are needed to study certain aspects of gravity waves. In the real atmosphere, gravity waves occur with different properties at different altitudes and, most often, simultaneously. In this case, when there is more than one dominant wave, the determination of gravity wave characteristics, such as the vertical wavelength and the phase velocity, is difficult. The interpretation of temperature perturbation plots versus the altitude and time as well as the application of the Fourier spectral analysis can produce errors.Exact knowledge of the wave characteristics is important both for determination of other characteristics, for example, the horizontal wave components, and for study of wave climatology. The wavelet analysis of vertical temperature profiles allows one to examine the wave's location in space. Up to now, gravity waves have been studied mainly by continuous wavelet transformation to determine dominant waves. We apply wavelet analysis to a time series of temperature profiles, observed by the ALOMAR ozone lidar at Andoya, Norway, and by the U. Bonn lidar system at ESRANGE, Sweden, both for determination of the dominant waves and for specifying the vertical wavelengths and the vertical component of the phase velocities. For this purpose, the wavelet amplitude spectra and the wavelet phase spectra are filtered and Hovmöller diagrams for dominant wavelengths are constructed. The advantage of this type of diagrams is that they give clear evidence for the localization of the dominant waves in space and time and for the development of their phase fronts.     

Stagnant low-energy ions in the near cusp region observed by Cluster

Measuring the low-energy ions in the Earth's magnetotail lobes is difficult, because a spacecraft becomes positively charged in a sunlit and tenuous plasma environment. Recent studies have introduced a new method, making use of the positive electric potential on the Cluster spacecraft, to measure the low-energy ions(less than a few tens of electronvolts) in the polar caps/magnetotail lobes in the years 2001–2010. With the measured velocities, we are able to study the trajectories of these low-energy ions. Particle tracing has been used in previous studies, confirming that ions of ionospheric origin are the dominant contributor to the ion population in the Earth's magnetotail lobes. In this work, we continue to study the source of low-energy ions measured in the lobes. We found that not all of the low-energy ions in the lobes come directly from the ionosphere. Particle tracing infers that some of the low-energy ions start to move tailward from the cusp/near-cusp region with a zero parallel velocity. In the following, we refer to these low-energy ions as stagnant low-energy ions. On the other hand, the in situ measurements by Cluster show a population of low-energy ions in the cusp/near-cusp region with pitch angles near 90°(i.e., no significant parallel velocity).The locations of stagnant low-energy ions are determined by particle tracing and in situ measurements. Similar ion energies and spatial distributions determined by these two methods confirm the presence of the stagnant low-energy ion population.     

Polar patches observed by ESR and their possible origin in the cusp region

Observations by the EISCAT Svalbard radar in summer have revealed electron density enhancements in the magnetic noon sector under conditions of IMF B_z southward. The features were identified as possible candidates for polar-cap patches drifting anti-Sunward with the plasma flow. Supporting measurements by the EISCAT mainland radar, the CUTLASS radar and DMSP satellites, in a multi-instrument study, suggested that the origin of the structures lay upstream at lower latitudes, with the modulation in density being attributed to variability in soft-particle precipitation in the cusp region. It is proposed that the variations in precipitation may be linked to changes in the location of the reconnection site at the magnetopause, which in turn results in changes in the energy distribution of the precipitating particles.     

等离子体层嘶声对槽区电子的弹跳共振散射效应

等离子体波动与带电粒子的共振相互作用一直是磁层物理学的研究热点.作为一种常见的宽频、右旋极化等离子体波动, 等离子体层嘶声在地球磁层电子的损失过程中起到了重要作用.其中, 嘶声波对电子的回旋共振散射被认为是辐射带槽区形成的主要机制, 而人们对嘶声波与电子的弹跳共振机制的理解却相对匮乏.本文旨在细致研究嘶声波与槽区电子的弹跳共振相互作用, 明确其对槽区电子动态演化过程的影响.研究发现, 嘶声波与电子的弹跳共振可以造成槽区电子在高投掷角(80°~90°)处明显的投掷角扩散.相比于低能(＜~100 keV)电子, 嘶声波引起的高能(＞~100 keV)电子的弹跳共振效应明显更强.槽区电子的弹跳共振投掷角扩散系数对于L-shell、地磁活动条件和共振阶数都有着很强的依赖性.随着L-shell的增大和地磁活动的增强, 嘶声波对电子的弹跳共振散射效应显著增强.对于低能电子, 共振阶数对总散射系数的贡献随阶数的升高而增大; 而对于低L-shell处的高能电子, 共振阶数对总散射系数的贡献随阶数的升高而呈现先增大后减小的趋势.嘶声波与槽区电子的弹跳共振相互作用可以有效地将高投掷角电子散射到较低的投掷角上, 进而在回旋共振机制的协助下将它们散射到损失锥中.因此, 未来在地球槽区电子动力学建模过程中有必要考虑等离子体层嘶声对电子的弹跳共振散射效应.

     

Rayleigh lidar temperature measurements in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere

A single-wavelength Rayleigh lidar system has been used to measure the temperatures in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere in the night in the altitude range from about 8 to $\text{30}\text{km}$. The temperature derivation is based on an inversion algorithm of the pure Rayleigh backscatter. Calculations include the derivation of the air molecular concentration by an iterative method and the backscattered signals corrected by the background aerosol, which is now found to be low and stable. The uncertainties in estimating the temperature using this method are discussed in detail.The temperature profiles and the tropopause characteristics derived by using the lidar measurements are compared with the radiosonde data. Good agreement is found between these two measurements revealing the potential of this method. The comparison with radiosonde data shows that the lidar measured tropopause temperature is lower by $\text{0.8±1.5}\text{K}$ and the tropopause height is higher by $\text{0.45±0.8}\text{km}$ than the radiosonde measurements. The climatology of local tropopause (24.57°N,121.13°E) is briefly discussed in terms of a double tropopause formation and seasonal variations of the tropopause height and temperature.     

Two-dimensional structure of mountain wave observed by aircraft during the PYREX experiment

This study presents an experimental analysis from aircraft measurements above the Pyrenees chain during the PYREX experiment. The Pyrenees chain, roughly WE oriented, is a major barrier for northerly and southerly airflows. We present a case of southerly flow (15 October 1990) and three successive cases of northerly flows above the Pyrenees (14, 15 and 16 November 1990) documented by two aircraft. The aircraft have described a vertical cross section perpendicular to the Pyrenean ridge. This area is described via the thermodynamical and dynamical fields which have a horizontal resolution of 10 km. Three methods for computing the vertical velocity of the air are presented. The horizontal advection terms which play a role in the budget equations are also evaluated. The altitude turbulence zone of 15 October are shown via turbulent fluxes, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), dissipation rate of TKE and inertial length-scale. A comparison of results obtained by eddy-correlation and inertial-dissi-pation method is presented. The experimental results show a warm and dry downdraft for the southerly flow with large values for advection terms. All the mountain wave cases are also shown to present an important dynamical perturbation just above the Pyrenees at upper altitudes.     

Ionospheric variations observed by the DEMETER satellite in the mid-latitude region during strong earthquakes

The French micro-satellite DEMETER (Detection of Electromagnetic Emissions Transmitted from Earthquake Regions) was launched on June 29, 2004. The orbit of DEMETER is polar, circular with an altitude of 710 km. The main scientific objective of this mission is to study the ionospheric perturbations, which may be linked to seismic activity. To achieve this, the payload of DEMETER allows the measurement of some important plasma parameters (ion composition, electron density, temperature and energetic particles). This paper presents examples of electron and ion density irregularities simultaneously observed for three earthquakes that occurred in the mid-latitude region. The DEMETER in situ measurements show the presence of electron and ion density irregularities near the epicenter of these earthquakes. These perturbations were recorded by the ISL (Langmuir Probe) and IAP (thermal plasma analyzer) experiments onboard DEMETER. The repetitiveness of the perturbations close to the epicenters is shown for these three events.     

基于纯转动Raman激光雷达的中低空大气温度高精度探测

本文介绍了一套纯转动Raman测温激光雷达系统,通过高分辨光谱分光与滤光优化设计、收发精确匹配以及弱信号检测等技术,实现在武汉城市上空从10 km至40 km的中低空大气温度高精度探测.观测结果与同时段探空气球进行比对,在30 km以下激光雷达探测温度与探空气球得到的温度数据吻合较好,最大偏差约为3.0 K,表明了该激光雷达温度测量的可靠性.采用30 min时间分辨率,在10~20 km高度范围内温度统计误差约为0.3 K(300 m空间分辨);20~30 km统计误差约为0.8 K (600 m空间分辨);30~40 km统计误差约为3.0 K(900 m空间分辨).通过整晚的温度廓线反演,为研究中低层大气中的波动现象提供依据.该转动Raman激光雷达实现了至40 km高度的高精度大气温度探测,进一步可与Rayleigh测温激光雷达30~80 km的高度衔接,为实现中低层大气连续观测研究提供了重要手段.     

云南地区观测的舒曼谐振背景变化特征

本文利用云南地区永胜台观测的地磁南北和东西分量开展舒曼谐振的背景变化特征分析.通过提取舒曼谐振各阶频率和功率谱密度的小时均值,分析了前三阶舒曼谐振频率和功率谱密度在分点和至点前后的周日变化特征.舒曼谐振功率谱密度的周日变化与亚洲、非洲和美洲三大闪电活动中心的活跃时段以及观测站相对于三大闪电活动中心的方位密切相关.舒曼谐振频率的周日变化特征更复杂.各阶功率谱密度和频率在夏至和秋分前后的变化幅度比春分和冬至前后大.从2011年舒曼谐振频率和功率谱密度日中值的年变化图中发现,谐振频率随季节变化的特征不明显,而功率谱密度的年度变化曲线呈半周期正弦波形态,以7月份为轴对称分布.功率谱密度的季节变化特征与闪电活动的季节变化特征相一致.南北和东西分量得到的前三阶谐振频率,第一阶约稳定在7.5 Hz.而随着阶数增加,南北分量得到的谐振频率比东西分量约大0.5 Hz.高阶谐振频率发生偏移的原因目前还不清楚.     

Gravity waves in the mesopause region observed by meteor radar: 1. A simple measurement technique

A simple new technique for measuring gravity-wave activity using meteor radars is described. The technique uses the variance of horizontal wind velocities measured by individual meteors as a proxy for the activity of the gravity-wave field. It is sensitive to gravity waves with horizontal wavelengths of up to about 400 km and periods up to about 3 h. The technique can be used to investigate the vertical structure of the gravity-wave field at heights between approximately 80 and 100 km and with a time resolution of approximately 6 h. The technique is demonstrated using data from an all-sky meteor radar based at Rothera, Antarctica (68°S, 68°W). Observations made over Rothera for 2006 and 2007 reveal a seasonal behaviour with a semi-annual cycle in wave activity. Wave activity maximises in summer and winter and minimises at the equinoxes. Monthly mean gravity-wave activity increases with height in all seasons except in summer when gravity-wave variances show little or no increase with height below 90 km. Comparisons between the gravity-wave activity determined by this meteor-variance technique and other measurements at similar latitudes in the Antarctic reveal generally good agreement.     

用接收函数方法研究云南及其邻区地壳上地幔结构

利用云南和中国地震台网30个台站记录的远震资料,采用接收函数扫描法和线性反演方法对云南及其邻区的壳幔速度结构进行了研究,获得了研究区内地壳厚度、Vp/Vs以及壳幔速度的分布特征.利用接收函数扫描（H-k）法和线性反演方法获取的台站下方地壳厚度结果表明,研究区地壳厚度变化剧烈.速度结构研究结果表明,红河断裂以西的腾冲-保山地块和思茅地块,以及南华板块北部地区的台站（如攀枝花、丽江、东川、永胜等）下方地壳均存在下地壳低速层,且具有高的地壳平均Vp/Vs值.这些不仅暗示研究区的下地壳低速异常可能为高温甚至高温导致的部分熔融所致,同时,也意味着该区下地壳的物质易于发生塑性流动,为地壳的变形和增厚创造了条件.红河断裂带作为云南地区的一个主要边界断裂,其西侧地区地壳厚度变化较东侧剧烈,另一方面,红河断裂西侧的平均地壳Vp/Vs值较其东侧要高.综合前人关于研究区岩石圈速度结构、地热流值、重力场和上地幔各向异性等地球物理场的研究结果.我们推断,现今的思茅块体和保山-腾冲块体在大地构造上应归属于冈瓦纳板块.     

用接收函数方法研究上海地震台阵下地壳结构

利用上海地震台阵16个台站记录的远震资料,采用接收函数线性反演方法,对台阵下的地壳速度结构进行研究,获得了研究区域内地壳厚度和地壳速度的分布特征。研究结果表明,研究区域Moho面深度约为33±2 km,Moho面深度基本不变,地幔顶部S波速度约4.4 km/s,地壳内没有发现明显的低速层。     

Numerical simulation of the observed strain field in the central-eastern Mediterranean region

The highly heterogeneous strain field indicated by neotectonic and seismological data in the central-eastern Mediterranean region has been reproduced, at a first approximation, by finite element modelling, of a 2D elastic thin plate. The zone considered is modelled as a mosaic of poorly deformable zones decoupled by highly deformable belts, simulating the major tectonic structures indicated by geological and geophysical evidence. The deformation of the model is obtained by imposing kinematic boundary conditions, representative of the motion of Africa and eastern Anatolia relative to Eurasia. Experiments carried out with different boundary conditions and model parameterisations have provided information on the sensitivity of the model and some insights into the geodynamic behavior of the study area. The deformation pattern of the central Mediterranean area is strongly conditioned by the mechanical properties assumed in the border zones between the Aegean and Adriatic systems. The match of the complex strain pattern observed in the western Anatolian–Aegean–Balkan zones is significantly favoured if high rigidity is assigned to the inner part of this structural system. A motion of Africa with respect to Eurasia compatible with an Eulerian pole located offshore Portugal best accounts for the observed strains in the central Mediterranean region. The match of the strongly heterogeneous strain field observed in the study area can hardly be achieved by simplified models not including major tectonic features and lateral heterogeneity of mechanical properties. The kinematic field resulting from the model configuration which best simulates the observed strain field presents some differences with respect to geodetic measurements in the Aegean–Western Anatolian area, where the computed velocities are systematically lower than the geodetic ones. It is suggested that the most plausible explanation of such differences is related to the fact that the present deformation pattern, inferred from geodetic data, may be different from the middle–long term one, inferred from seismological and geological data.     

Global structure and seasonal variations of the migrating 6-h tide observed by SABER/TIMED

Ten years of SABER/TIMED temperature data are used to analyze the global structure and seasonal variations of the migrating 6-h tide from the stratosphere to the lower thermosphere. The amplitudes of the migrating 6-h tide increase with altitudes. In the stratosphere, the migrating 6-h tide peaks around 35°N/S. The climatologically annual mean of the migrating 6-h tide clearly shows the manifestation of the(4, 6) Hough mode between 70 and 90 km that peaks at the equator and near 35°N/S. Above 90 km, the 6-h tide shows more than one Hough mode with the(4, 6) mode being the dominant one. The migrating 6-h tide is stronger in the southern hemisphere. Annual, semiannual, 4-, and 3-month oscillations are the four dominant seasonal variations of the tidal amplitude. In the stratosphere and stratopause, the spring enhancement of the 6-h tide at middle latitudes is the most conspicuous feature. From the mesosphere to the lower thermosphere, the tidal amplitude at low latitudes is gradually in the scale of that at middle latitudes and exhibits different temporal variations at different altitudes and latitudes. Both ozone heating in the stratosphere and the background atmosphere probably affect the generation and the seasonal variations of the migrating 6-h tide. In addition, the non-linear interaction between different tidal harmonics is another possible mechanism.