Metal layers at high altitudes: A possible connection to meteoroids

International audienceIn the past, many studies have been carried out to demonstrate the influence of meteoroids on the atmospheric metal layer, observed roughly in the altitude range 80?105 km. Even with the capability of present day resonance lidars to measure metal densities within single meteor trails, it has been difficult to prove any influence of meteors on the average metal layer. In contrast to approaches taken earlier, we discuss here the seasonal characteristics of potassium, calcium, calcium ion, iron and sodium above 110 km altitude where the average nocturnal densities are so low that the existence of a baseline level of metal atoms and ions is often overlooked. By comparing simultaneous and common-volume observations of different metal layers at one location, we demonstrate that despite their different seasonal characteristics at lower altitudes remarkably similar seasonal characteristics are observed at higher altitudes. In addition, for potassium at different latitudes a qualitative agreement is also found. A comparison of metal densities at 113 km altitude with known meteor showers indicates a strong influence of shower meteoroids on the topside of the metal layers. Simultaneous observations of K along with Ca, Fe and/or Na permits the calculation of abundance ratios. We find that these ratios at 113 km altitude are quite similar to values measured in single meteor trails by ground based lidars. Given these evidences, we contend that there is a direct influence of ablating meteoroids on the topside of the mesospheric metal layer. Furthermore, the increase in densities throughout summer with similar abundance ratios as observed during meteor showers is a strong evidence for the influence of sporadic meteoroids on the high metal layers

The mesospheric metal layer topside: a possible connection to meteoroids

International audienceIn the past, many studies have been carried out to demonstrate the influence of meteoroids on the atmospheric metal layer, observed roughly in the altitude range 80?105 km. Even with the capability of present day resonance lidars to measure metal densities within single meteor trails, it has been difficult to prove any influence of meteors on the average metal layer. In contrast to approaches taken earlier, we discuss here the seasonal characteristics of potassium, calcium, calcium ion, iron and sodium above 110 km altitude where the average nocturnal densities are so low that the existence of a baseline level of metal atoms and ions is often overlooked. By comparing simultaneous and common-volume observations of different metal layers at one location, we demonstrate that despite their different seasonal characteristics at lower altitudes remarkably similar seasonal characteristics are observed at higher altitudes. In addition, a qualitative agreement is also found for potassium at different latitudes. A comparison of metal densities at 113 km altitude with known meteor showers indicates a strong influence of shower meteoroids on the topside of the metal layers. Simultaneous observations of K along with Ca, Fe and/or Na permit the calculation of abundance ratios, which at 113 km altitude are quite similar to values measured in single meteor trails by ground based lidars. Furthermore, the increase in densities throughout summer is strong evidence for the influence of sporadic meteoroids on the high metal layers. This increase correlates well with the seasonal variation of sporadic micrometeor input independent of meteor showers. Given these evidences, we contend that there is a direct influence of ablating meteoroids on the topside of the mesospheric metal layer

The thermal structure at the topside and above of polar mesosphere summer echoes over Spitsbergen 78° N

Simultaneous measurements of temperature and polar mesosphere summer echoes (PMSE) were performed at the polar cap (78° N) during summer 2001 and 2003. In summer time the mesopause region is characterized by extremely low temperatures around 120 K. It is remarkable that PMSE are practically never observed above 92 km although temperatures are low enough to allow the existence of ice particles. In this case study we compare the PMSE topside with temperatures measured by the potassium lidar and with frost point temperatures using water-vapor mixing ratios from models. We find striking discrepancies with our current understanding of ice particles and temperature in this region. In this case study we find that the temperature can be more than 20 K lower than the frost point temperature but no PMSE is observed above 92 km altitude. We show that the lack of PMSE does not necessarily imply that the temperature is too high

First observations of noctilucent clouds by lidar at Svalbard, 78°N

International audienceIn summer 2001 a potassium lidar was installed near Longyearbyen (78° N) on the north polar island of Spitsbergen which is part of the archipelago Svalbard. At the same place a series of meteorological rockets ("falling spheres", FS) were launched which gave temperatures from the lower thermosphere to the stratosphere. The potassium lidar is capable of detecting noctilucent clouds (NLCs) and of measuring temperatures in the lower thermosphere, both under daylight conditions. In this paper we give an overview on the NLC measurements (the first at this latitude) and compare the results with temperatures from meteorological rockets which have been published recently (Lübken and Mülleman, 2003) NLCs were observed from 12 June (the first day of operation) until 12 August when a period of bad weather started. When the lidar was switched on again on 26 August, no NLC was observed. The mean occurrence frequency in the period 12 June -- 12 August ("lidar NLC period") is 77%. The mean of all individual NLC peak altitudes is 83.6 km (variability: 1.1 km). The mean peak NLC altitude does not show a significant variation with season. The average top and bottom altitude of the NLC layer is 85.1 and 82.5 km, respectively, with a variability of ~1.2 km. The mean of the maximum volume backscatter coefficient bmax at our wavelength of 770 nm is 3.9 x 10-10/m/sr with a large variability of ±3.8 x 10-10/m/sr. Comparison of NLC characteristics with measurements at ALOMAR (69° N) shows that the peak altitude and the maximum volume backscatter coefficient are similar at both locations but NLCs occur more frequently at higher latitudes. Simultaneous temperature and NLC measurements are available for 3 flights and show that the NLC layer occurs in the lower part of the height range with super-saturation. The NLC peak occurs over a large range of degree of saturation (S) whereas most models predict the peak at S = 1. This demonstrates that steady-state considerations may not be applicable when relating individual NLC properties to background conditions. On the other hand, the mean variation of the NLC appearance with height and season is in agreement with the climatological variation of super-saturation derived from the FS temperature measurements

The photolysis of FeOH and its effect on the bottomside of the mesospheric Fe layer

Metal layers in the upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere are created through meteoric ablation. They are important for understanding the temperature structure, dynamics and chemistry of this atmospheric region. Recent lidar observations have shown a regular downward extension of the Fe layer bottomside which correlates with solar radiation. In this study we combine lidar observations, quantum chemical calculations and model simulations to show that this bottomside extension is primarily caused by photolysis of FeOH. We determine the photolysis rate to be J(FeOH)=(6±3)×10−3s−1. We also show that the reaction FeOH+H→FeO+H2 is slower at mesospheric temperatures than previous estimates. With these updated rate coefficients, we are able to significantly improve the modelling of the Fe layer bottomside. The calculations further show the nearly complete depletion of FeOH during sunlit periods. This may have implications for cloud nuclei in the middle atmosphere

First global observations of the mesospheric potassium layer

Metal species, produced by meteoric ablation, act as useful tracers of upper atmosphere dynamics and chemistry. Of these meteoric metals, K is an enigma: at extratropical latitudes, limited available lidar data show that the K layer displays a semiannual seasonal variability, rather than the annual pattern seen in other metals such as Na and Fe. Here we present the first near-global K retrieval, where K atom number density profiles are derived from dayglow measurements made by the Optical Spectrograph and Infrared Imager System spectrometer on board the Odin satellite. This robust retrieval produces density profiles with typical layer peak errors of ±15% and a 2 km vertical grid resolution. We demonstrate that these retrieved profiles compare well with available lidar data and show for the first time that the unusual semiannual behavior is near-global in extent. This new data set has wider applications for improving understanding of the K chemistry and of related upper atmosphere processes

Seasonal variation of nocturnal temperatures between 1 and 105 km altitude at 54° N observed by lidar

Temperature soundings are performed by lidar at the mid-latitude station of Kühlungsborn (Germany, 54° N, 12° E). The profiles cover the complete range from the lower troposphere (~1 km) to the lower thermosphere (~105 km) by simultaneous and co-located operation of a Rayleigh-Mie-Raman lidar and a potassium resonance lidar. Observations have been done during 266 nights between June 2002 and July 2007, each of 3–15 h length. This large and unique data set provides comprehensive information on the altitudinal and seasonal variation of temperatures from the troposphere to the lower thermosphere. The remaining day-to-day-variability is strongly reduced by harmonic fits at constant altitude levels and a representative data set is achieved. This data set reveals a two-level mesopause structure with an altitude of about 86–87 km (~144 K) in summer and ~102 km (~170 K) during the rest of the year. The average stratopause altitude is ~48 km throughout the whole year, with temperatures varying between 258 and 276 K. From the fit parameters amplitudes and phases of annual, semi-annual, and quarter-annual variations are derived. The amplitude of the annual component is largest with amplitudes of up to 30 K in 85 km, while the quarter-annual variation is smallest and less than 3 K at all altitudes. The lidar data set is compared with ECMWF temperatures below about 70 km altitude and reference data from the NRLMSISE-00 model above. Apart from the temperature soundings the aerosol backscatter ratio is measured between 20 and 35 km. The seasonal variation of these values is presented here for the first time

Ten-year climatology of potassium number density at 54° N, 12° E

In the years from 2002 to 2012 potassium densities observations were performed in the mesopause region at Kühlungsborn using a potassium Doppler lidar. The 10-year diurnal data set comprises 5090 h of potassium number densities at 741 days with 25.2% under full daylight conditions. Potassium number densities show a clear semi-annual variation with two broad maxima reoccurring every year. The first maximum occurs in summer and lasts for about 4 months (May–August) with number densities up to 60 atoms/cc. The second maximum is observed from early December to late February with densities up to 30 atoms/cc. Both the peak density and the column density are higher at solstices than at equinoxes. The large data set shows little variation of the mean layer over the 10 years

Summer time Fe depletion in the Antarctic mesopause region

We report common volume measurements of Fe densities, temperatures and ice particle occurrence in the mesopause region at Davis Station, Antarctica (69°S) in the years 2011–2012. Our observations show a strong correlation of the Fe-layer summer time depletion with temperature, but no clear causal relation with the onset or occurrence of ice particles measured as noctilucent clouds (NLC) or polar mesosphere summer echoes (PMSE). The combination of these measurements indicates that the strong summer depletion can be explained by gas-phase chemistry alone and does not require heterogeneous removal of Fe and its compounds on ice particles