Polar Ground-Based Measurements of Mesospheric Carbon Monoxide

Physics

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9310 Antarctica, 6969 Remote Sensing, 3334 Middle Atmosphere Dynamics (0341, 0342), 3360 Remote Sensing, 3394 Instruments And Techniques

Scientific paper

Carbon monoxide has often been studied as an important tracer of the dynamics of the middle and upper atmosphere, since its density depends heavily on the details of atmospheric chemistry and transport processes. The mesospheric region, difficult to measure with most remote sensing techniques, is of particular interest due to its role as a boundary between the neutral lower atmosphere and the highly charged upper atmosphere. Measuring atmospheric dynamics from the earthAƒAøAøâ_sA¬Aøâ_zAøs rotational pole makes it possible to collect especially interesting results because many effects due to the earthAƒAøAøâ_sA¬Aøâ_zAøs rotation are minimized. In the past, most continuous measurements of atmospheric CO have been obtained by mid-latitude ground observations of the J = 1 -> 0 transition and more recently, by satellite measurements. Additionally, meteor radars and measurements of the aurora by optical telescopes have been used in studies of the thermosphere above about 80 km. The Antarctic Sub-millimeter Telescope/Remote Observatory (AST/RO) is capable of observing rotational emissions of CO at a broad range of altitudes in the upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere, between about 40 and 130 km. Due to the dry climate at the South Pole, it is possible to obtain higher frequency measurements with little interference from water vapor. By measuring the J = 2 ->1, J =4 -> 3, and J = 7 -> 6 rotational transitions of CO, AST/RO can observe processes in the mesosphere with greater accuracy than previous studies have obtained. First results using this technique have already produced mesospheric wind velocity data and density and mixing profile results. Additional analysis of the reduced data from these observations will be presented.

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