Gravity wave flux modulation by planetary waves in a circulation model

Mit Hilfe eines Zirkulationsmodells der mittleren Atmosphäre wird die Ausbreitung der Quasi-Zwei-Tage-Welle simuliert. Das Modell verfügt über eine aktuelle Schwerewellenparametrisierung und ermöglicht daher die detaillierte Beschreibung der Wechselwirkung planetarer Wellen mit Schwerewellen. Bei Anwesenheit der Quasi-Zwei-Tage-Welle wird der Schwerewellenfluss mit der Periode von zwei Tagen und der räumlichen Struktur der Quasi- Zwei-Tage-Welle moduliert. Modellergebnisse zeigen, dass sich die Quasi-Zwei-Tage-Welle nicht gut in die untere Thermosphäre ausbreitet. Phasenvergleiche zwischen Quasi-Zwei-Tage-Welle und Divergenz des Eliassen-Palm-Flusses der Schwerewellen zeigen, dass dies eine Folge sekundärer Anregung der Quasi-Zwei-Tage-Welle durch brechende Schwerewellen ist, die außer Phase mit der Originalwelle erfolgt

The sensitivity of the MUAM model to the variability of non-orographic gravity wave distributions

Numerical experiments with the Middle and Upper Atmosphere Model with modified parameterization settings were carried out to study the response of the mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) wind circulation to the non-orographic gravity waves (GWs) originating from the lower atmosphere. The modification of the phase speed spectrum controls the height of the zonal wind reversal due to strengthening of the westerly winds. The simulation results obtained for various latitudinal distributions of the intensity of non-orographic GWs at the source level show that the zonal circulation is most sensitive to GWs variability at high latitudes. The latitudinal distribution of GW intensity, produced by the global distribution of convective processes and seasonal variations in GW sources, and modified phase speed spectrum made it possible to simulate the major zonal circulation structures observed by MLT wind radar.Numerische Experimente mit dem Middle and Upper Atmosphere Model mit modifizierten Parametriesierungseinstellungen wurden durchgeführt, um die Reaktion der Zirkulation der in der Mesosphäre / unteren Thermosphäre (MLT) auf nicht-orographische Schwerewellen (SW) zu untersuchen, die von der unteren Atmosphäre ausgehen. Die Modifikation des Phasengeschwindikeitsspektrums steuert die Höhe der zonalen Windumkehr aufgrund der Verstärkung der Westwinde. Die Simulationsergebnisse für verschiedene Breitenverteilungen der Intensität nicht-orographischer SW in Quellenhöhe zeigen, dass die zonale Zirkulation am stärksten auf SW-Variabilität in hohen Breiten reagiert. Die Breitenverteilung der SW-Intensität, die durch die globale Verteilung konvektiver Prozesse und saisonaler Variationen der SW-Quellen erzeugt wird, und das modifizierte Phasengeschwindkeitsspektrum ermöglichten es, die wichgsten zonalen Zirkulationsstrukturen zu simulieren, die von einem MLT-Windradar beobachtet wurden

Climatic variability of the mean flow and stationary planetary waves in the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data

NCEP/NCAR (National Center for Environmental Prediction – National Center for Atmospheric Research) data have been used to estimate the long-term variability of the mean flow, temperature, and Stationary Planetary Waves (SPW) in the troposphere and lower stratosphere. The results obtained show noticeable climatic variabilities in the intensity and position of the tropospheric jets that are caused by temperature changes in the lower atmosphere. As a result, we can expect that this variability of the mean flow will cause the changes in the SPW propagation conditions. The simulation of the SPW with zonal wave number <I>m</I>=1 (SPW1), performed with a linearized model using the mean flow distributions typical for the 1960s and for the beginning of 21st century, supports this assumption and shows that during the last 40 years the amplitude of the SPW1 in the stratosphere and mesosphere increased substantially. The analysis of the SPW amplitudes extracted from the geopotential height and zonal wind NCEP/NCAR data supports the results of simulation and shows that during the last years there exists an increase in the SPW1 activity in the lower stratosphere. These changes in the amplitudes are accompanied by increased interannual variability of the SPW1, as well. Analysis of the SPW2 activity shows that changes in its amplitude have a different sign in the northern winter hemisphere and at low latitudes in the southern summer hemisphere. The value of the SPW2 variability differs latitudinally and can be explained by nonlinear interference of the primary wave propagation from below and from secondary SPW2

A study of Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances and Atmospheric Gravity Waves using EISCAT Svalbard Radar IPY-data

We present a statistical study of Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances (TIDs) as observed by the EISCAT Svalbard Radar (ESR) during the continuous IPY-run (March 2007–February 2008) with field-aligned measurements. We have developed a semi-automatic routine for searching and extracting Atmospheric Gravity Wave (AGW) activity. The collected data shows that AGW-TID signatures are common in the high-latitude ionosphere especially in the field-aligned ion velocity data (244 cases of AGW-TID signatures in daily records), but they can be observed also in electron density (26 cases), electron temperature (12 cases) and ion temperature (26 cases). During the IPY campaign (in solar minimum conditions) AGW-TID events appear more frequently during summer months than during the winter months. It remains still as a topic for future studies whether the observed seasonal variation is natural or caused by seasonal variation in the performance of the observational method that we use (AGW-TID signature may be more pronounced in a dense ionosphere). In our AGW-TID dataset the distribution of the oscillation periods has two peaks, one around 0.5–0.7 h and the other around 1.1–1.3 h. The diurnal occurrence rate has a deep minimum in the region of magnetic midnight, which might be partly explained by irregular auroral activity obscuring the TID signatures from our detection routines. As both the period and horizontal phase speed estimates (as derived from the classical AGW dispersion relation) show values typical both for large scale TIDs and mesoscale TIDs it is difficult to distinguish whether the generator for high-latitude AGW-TIDs resides typically in the troposphere or in the near-Earth space. The results of our statistical analysis give anyway some valuable reference information for the future efforts to learn more about the dominating TID source mechanisms in polar cap conditions, and to improve AGW simulations

El Niño influence on the mesosphere/lower thermosphere circulation at midlatitudes as seen by a VHF meteor radar at Collm (51.3 ° N, 13 ° E)

Mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) zonal winds continuously measured by a VHF meteor radar at Collm, Germany (51.3° N, 13.0° E) in the height range 82 – 97 km from 2004 to date are analyzed with respect to the signature of El Niño. The comparison of Niño3 equatorial SST index and MLT wind time series shows that in January and especially in February zonal winds are positively correlated with the Niño3 index. We note a delay of about one month of the MLT zonal wind effect with respect to equatorial sea surface temperature variability. The signal is strong for the upper altitudes (above 90 km) accessible to the radar observations, but weakens with decreasing height. This reflects the fact that during El Niño years the westerly winter middle atmosphere wind jet is weaker, and this is also the case with the easterly lower thermospheric jet. Owing to the reversal of the absolute El Niño signal from negative to positive with altitude, at the height of the maximum meteor flux, which is around 90 km, the El Niño signal is weak. The experimental results can be qualitatively reproduced by numerical experiments using a mechanistic global circulation model with prescribed tropospheric temperatures and latent heat release for El Niño and La Niña conditions

Effect of El Niño on the mesosphere/lower thermosphere winds over Collm (51.3°N, 13°E)

Mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) zonal winds measured by a VHF meteor radar at Collm, Germany (51.3°N, 13.0°E) during late winter 2015/2016 show very strong westerly winds above about 90 km, but not below that height. This anomaly appears during a very strong El Niño event. The comparison of Niño3 equatorial sea surface temperature index and the Collm MLT wind time series starting in 2004 shows that in January and especially in February zonal winds are positively correlated with the Niño3 index. The signal is strong for the upper altitudes (above 90 km) accessible to the radar observations, but weakens with decreasing height. This reflects the fact that during El Niño years the westerly winter middle atmosphere wind jet is weaker on an average, and this is also the case with the easterly lower thermospheric jet. The El Niño effect on the meridional wind is weak. The experimental results can be qualitatively reproduced by numerical experiments using the MUAM mechanistic global circulation model with prescribed tropospheric temperatures and latent heat release for El Niño and La Niña conditions.Der Zonalwind in der oberen Mesosphäre/unteren Thermosphäre über Collm (51.3°N, 13.0°E) in der zweiten Hälfte des Winter 2015/2016 weist eine besonders starke westliche Komponente oberhalb von etwa 90 km auf. Diese Anomalie erfolgte während eines sehr starken El Niño-Ereignisses. Der Vergleich von Collmer Zonalwinden seit 2004 und dem Niño3-index zeigt im Januar und besonders Februar eine positive Korrelation. Diese ist stark oberhalb von 90 km, nimmt aber nach unten hin ab. Dies spiegelt die Tatsache wider, dass während El Niño-Jahren im Mittel der stratosphärische/mesosphärische Westwindjet schwächer ist. Dieses Signal kehrt aber in der oberen Mesosphäre um, so dass der thermosphärische Ostwindjet ebenfalls schwächer ist. Der Effekt auf den meridionalen Wind ist schwächer. Die Beobachtungen können mit Modellexperimenten qualitativ reproduziert werden

The influence of NCEP-data assimilated into COMMA-LIM on the 16-day wave

The general circulation model COMMA-LIM solves the primitive equations on a sphere using gridpoints. The relative large interval between adjacent gridpoints (5° × 5.6° latitude versus longitude) causes an incorrect meridional temperature gradient in the coarsly resolved troposphere that leads to too weak winds there, particularly in the lower winter stratosphere above the polar region. By using the technique of nudging 11-year averaged NCEP zonal mean temperature data were assimilated into COMMA-LIM. This means that longitudinal dependent processes as calculated by the model still influence the atmosphere. The nudging method has improved not only the lower atmosphere, but also the middle atmospheric jets show a more realistic behaviour. A numerical experiment by forcing the 16-day wave was carried out in order to investigate the influence of an improved background circulation on the vertical propagation of planetary waves.Das globale Zirkulationsmodell COMMA-LIM berechnet die primitiven Gleichungen auf einem Kugelgitter. Der relativ große Gitterabstand von 5°× 5.6° in Breite und Länge und die grobe vertikale Auflösung führen zu einem inkorrekten meridionalen Temperaturgradienten in der Troposphäre, so dass die troposphärischen Jets und der polare Winterwirbel zu schwach ausgeprägt sind. Mit Hilfe der Methode des Nudging wurden in den unteren 30 km der Atmosphäre 11-Jahres gemittelte NCEP Reanalysedaten des Temperaturfeldes assimiliert. Dabei wurde nur der zonale Mittelwert der berechneten Temperatur an die Reanalysedaten relaxiert, so dass die Antriebsterme, die von COMMA-LIM berechnet werden, erhalten bleiben. Durch diese Methode wurden Wind- und Temperaturfeld sowohl in der Troposphäre als auch in der mittleren Atmosphäre verbessert. Ein Experiment zur Ausbreitung der 16-Tage Welle wurde unter den neuen Bedingungen durchgeführt, und der Einfluß der veränderten Atmosphäre auf die vertikale Wellenausbreitung wurde untersucht

Semi-empirical model of middle atmosphere wind from the ground to the lower thermosphere

During recent years, special attention has been paid to understanding the background circulation of the middle atmosphere. Particularly in the mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) region, this has involved including data from a range of new radar measurements. It has also involved the comparison of existing empirical middle atmosphere wind models, such as CIRA-86 and HWM-93 to the new data. This has led to the construction of empirical models of MLT winds such as the Global Empirical Wind Model (GEWM). Further investigations are aimed at the construction of new empirical and semi-empirical wind models of the entire middle atmosphere including these new experimental results. The results of a new wind climatology (0-100 km) are presented here, based upon the GEWM, a reanalysis of stratospheric data, and a numerical model which is used to fill the gap between data from the stratospheric and MLT regions. © 2008 COSPAR