Articles | Volume 18, issue 21
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15569-2018
© Author(s) 2018. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-18-15569-2018
© Author(s) 2018. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
30 Oct 2018
Research article |
| 30 Oct 2018
| 30 Oct 2018
Simultaneous observations of NLCs and MSEs at midlatitudes: implications for formation and advection of ice particles
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
Jochen Zöllner
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
now at: Planet AI GmbH, Rostock, Germany
Marius Zecha
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
Kathrin Baumgarten
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
Josef Höffner
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
Gunter Stober
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
Franz-Josef Lübken
Leibniz-Institute of Atmospheric Physics at Rostock University, Kühlungsborn, Germany
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We recorded atmospheric waves over seven years with a lidar in northern Norway, analysing temperature and wind from 35 to 60 km altitude. This yielded the first long-term picture of how wave energy varies with height and season at this location. Winter carried up to ten times more energy than summer, and the balance shifted with wavelength and frequency. Energy patterns often diverged from textbook slopes. These findings refine our view of the upper atmosphere at high latitudes.
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This paper describes a new lidar system developed in Germany intended to study wind and temperature at night in the middle atmosphere. The paper explains how we have set up the system to work automatically and gives technical details for anyone who wants to build a similar system. We present a case study showing temperatures and winds at different altitudes. In a future article, we will present how we process the data and deal with uncertainties.
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Arthur Gauthier, Claudia Borries, Alexander Kozlovsky, Diego Janches, Peter Brown, Denis Vida, Christoph Jacobi, Damian Murphy, Masaki Tsutsumi, Njål Gulbrandsen, Satonori Nozawa, Mark Lester, Johan Kero, Nicholas Mitchell, Tracy Moffat-Griffin, and Gunter Stober
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Witali Krochin, Axel Murk, and Gunter Stober
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Atmospheric tides are global-scale oscillations with periods of a fraction of a day. Their observation in the middle atmosphere is challenging and rare, as it requires continuous measurements with a high temporal resolution. In this paper, temperature time series of a ground-based microwave radiometer were analyzed with a spectral filter to derive thermal tide amplitudes and phases in an altitude range of 25–50 km at the geographical locations of Payerne and Bern (Switzerland).
Michael Gerding, Robin Wing, Eframir Franco-Diaz, Gerd Baumgarten, Jens Fiedler, Torsten Köpnick, and Reik Ostermann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 2789–2809, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-2789-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-2789-2024, 2024
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This paper describes a new lidar system developed in Germany intended to study wind and temperature at night in the middle atmosphere. The paper explains how we have set up the system to work automatically and gives technical details for anyone who wants to build a similar system. We present a case study showing temperatures and winds at different altitudes. In a future article, we will present how we process the data and deal with uncertainties.
Gunter Stober, Sharon L. Vadas, Erich Becker, Alan Liu, Alexander Kozlovsky, Diego Janches, Zishun Qiao, Witali Krochin, Guochun Shi, Wen Yi, Jie Zeng, Peter Brown, Denis Vida, Neil Hindley, Christoph Jacobi, Damian Murphy, Ricardo Buriti, Vania Andrioli, Paulo Batista, John Marino, Scott Palo, Denise Thorsen, Masaki Tsutsumi, Njål Gulbrandsen, Satonori Nozawa, Mark Lester, Kathrin Baumgarten, Johan Kero, Evgenia Belova, Nicholas Mitchell, Tracy Moffat-Griffin, and Na Li
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On 15 January 2022, the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha‘apai volcano exploded in a vigorous eruption, causing many atmospheric phenomena reaching from the surface up to space. In this study, we investigate how the mesospheric winds were affected by the volcanogenic gravity waves and estimated their propagation direction and speed. The interplay between model and observations permits us to gain new insights into the vertical coupling through atmospheric gravity waves.
Thorben H. Mense, Josef Höffner, Gerd Baumgarten, Ronald Eixmann, Jan Froh, Alsu Mauer, Alexander Munk, Robin Wing, and Franz-Josef Lübken
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 1665–1677, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1665-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1665-2024, 2024
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A novel lidar system with five beams measured horizontal and vertical winds together, reaching altitudes up to 25 km. Developed in Germany, it revealed accurate horizontal wind data compared to forecasts, but vertical wind estimates differed. The lidar's capability to detect small-scale wind patterns was highlighted, advancing atmospheric research.
Jennifer Hartisch, Jorge L. Chau, Ralph Latteck, Toralf Renkwitz, and Marius Zecha
Ann. Geophys., 42, 29–43, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-42-29-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-42-29-2024, 2024
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Scientists are studying the mesosphere and lower thermosphere using radar in northern Norway. They found peculiar events with strong upward and downward air movements, happening frequently (up to 2.5 % per month) from 2015 to 2021. Over 700 such events were noted, lasting around 20 min and expanding the studied layer. A total of 17 % of these events had extreme vertical speeds, showing their unique nature.
Eframir Franco-Diaz, Michael Gerding, Laura Holt, Irina Strelnikova, Robin Wing, Gerd Baumgarten, and Franz-Josef Lübken
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 1543–1558, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-1543-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-1543-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We use satellite, lidar, and ECMWF data to study storm-related waves that propagate above Kühlungsborn, Germany, during summer. Although these events occur in roughly half of the years of the satellite data we analyzed, we focus our study on two case study years (2014 and 2015). These events could contribute significantly to middle atmospheric circulation and are not accounted for in weather and climate models.
Florian Günzkofer, Gunter Stober, Dimitry Pokhotelov, Yasunobu Miyoshi, and Claudia Borries
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5897–5907, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5897-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5897-2023, 2023
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Electric currents in the ionosphere can impact both satellite and ground-based infrastructure. These currents depend strongly on the collisions of ions and neutral particles. Measuring ion–neutral collisions is often only possible via certain assumptions. The direct measurement of ion–neutral collision frequencies is possible with multifrequency incoherent scatter radar measurements. This paper presents one analysis method of such measurements and discusses its advantages and disadvantages.
Florian Günzkofer, Dimitry Pokhotelov, Gunter Stober, Ingrid Mann, Sharon L. Vadas, Erich Becker, Anders Tjulin, Alexander Kozlovsky, Masaki Tsutsumi, Njål Gulbrandsen, Satonori Nozawa, Mark Lester, Evgenia Belova, Johan Kero, Nicholas J. Mitchell, and Claudia Borries
Ann. Geophys., 41, 409–428, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-41-409-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-41-409-2023, 2023
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Gravity waves (GWs) are waves in Earth's atmosphere and can be observed as cloud ripples. Under certain conditions, these waves can propagate up into the ionosphere. Here, they can cause ripples in the ionosphere plasma, observable as oscillations of the plasma density. Therefore, GWs contribute to the ionospheric variability, making them relevant for space weather prediction. Additionally, the behavior of these waves allows us to draw conclusions about the atmosphere at these altitudes.
Jens Faber, Michael Gerding, and Torsten Köpnick
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 4183–4193, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4183-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-4183-2023, 2023
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Weather forecasters around the world use uncrewed balloons to measure wind and temperature for their weather models. In these measurements, wind is recorded from the shift of the balloon by the moving air. However, the balloons and the measurement devices also move by themselves in still air. This creates artificial wind measurements that are normally removed from the data. We show new techniques to avoid these movements and increase the altitude resolution of the wind measurement by 6 times.
Guochun Shi, Witali Krochin, Eric Sauvageat, and Gunter Stober
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 9137–9159, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-9137-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-9137-2023, 2023
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We present the interannual and climatological behavior of ozone and water vapor from microwave radiometers in the Arctic.
By defining a virtual conjugate latitude station in the Southern Hemisphere, we investigate altitude-dependent interhemispheric differences and estimate the ascent and descent rates of water vapor in both hemispheres. Ozone and water vapor measurements will create a deeper understanding of the evolution of middle atmospheric ozone and water vapor.
Ashique Vellalassery, Gerd Baumgarten, Mykhaylo Grygalashvyly, and Franz-Josef Lübken
Ann. Geophys., 41, 289–300, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-41-289-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-41-289-2023, 2023
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The solar cycle affects the H2O concentration in the upper mesosphere mainly in two ways: directly through photolysis and, at the time and place of NLC formation, indirectly through temperature changes. The H2O–Lyman-α response is modified by NLC formation, resulting in a positive response at the ice formation region (due to the temperature change effect on the ice formation rate) and a negative response at the sublimation zone (due to the photolysis effect).
Gunter Stober, Alan Liu, Alexander Kozlovsky, Zishun Qiao, Witali Krochin, Guochun Shi, Johan Kero, Masaki Tsutsumi, Njål Gulbrandsen, Satonori Nozawa, Mark Lester, Kathrin Baumgarten, Evgenia Belova, and Nicholas Mitchell
Ann. Geophys., 41, 197–208, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-41-197-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-41-197-2023, 2023
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The Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha‘apai volcanic eruption was one of the most vigorous volcanic explosions in the last centuries. The eruption launched many atmospheric waves traveling around the Earth. In this study, we identify these volcanic waves at the edge of space in the mesosphere/lower-thermosphere, leveraging wind observations conducted with multi-static meteor radars in northern Europe and with the Chilean Observation Network De Meteor Radars (CONDOR).
Gunter Stober, Alan Liu, Alexander Kozlovsky, Zishun Qiao, Ales Kuchar, Christoph Jacobi, Chris Meek, Diego Janches, Guiping Liu, Masaki Tsutsumi, Njål Gulbrandsen, Satonori Nozawa, Mark Lester, Evgenia Belova, Johan Kero, and Nicholas Mitchell
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 5769–5792, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5769-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5769-2022, 2022
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Precise and accurate measurements of vertical winds at the mesosphere and lower thermosphere are rare. Although meteor radars have been used for decades to observe horizontal winds, their ability to derive reliable vertical wind measurements was always questioned. In this article, we provide mathematical concepts to retrieve mathematically and physically consistent solutions, which are compared to the state-of-the-art non-hydrostatic model UA-ICON.
Witali Krochin, Francisco Navas-Guzmán, David Kuhl, Axel Murk, and Gunter Stober
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2231–2249, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2231-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2231-2022, 2022
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This study leverages atmospheric temperature measurements performed with a ground-based radiometer making use of data that was collected during a 4-year observational campaign applying a new retrieval algorithm that improves the maximal altitude range from 45 to 55 km. The measurements are validated against two independent data sets, MERRA2 reanalysis data and the meteorological analysis of NAVGEM-HA.
Sumanta Sarkhel, Gunter Stober, Jorge L. Chau, Steven M. Smith, Christoph Jacobi, Subarna Mondal, Martin G. Mlynczak, and James M. Russell III
Ann. Geophys., 40, 179–190, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-40-179-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-40-179-2022, 2022
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A rare gravity wave event was observed on the night of 25 April 2017 over northern Germany. An all-sky airglow imager recorded an upward-propagating wave at different altitudes in mesosphere with a prominent wave front above 91 km and faintly observed below. Based on wind and satellite-borne temperature profiles close to the event location, we have found the presence of a leaky thermal duct layer in 85–91 km. The appearance of this duct layer caused the wave amplitudes to diminish below 91 km.
Christoph Jacobi, Friederike Lilienthal, Dmitry Korotyshkin, Evgeny Merzlyakov, and Gunter Stober
Adv. Radio Sci., 19, 185–193, https://doi.org/10.5194/ars-19-185-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/ars-19-185-2021, 2021
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We compare winds and tidal amplitudes in the upper mesosphere/lower thermosphere region for cases with disturbed and undisturbed geomagnetic conditions. The zonal winds in both the mesosphere and lower thermosphere tend to be weaker during disturbed conditions. The summer equatorward meridional wind jet is weaker for disturbed geomagnetic conditions. The effect of geomagnetic variability on tidal amplitudes, except for the semidiurnal tide, is relatively small.
Gunter Stober, Alexander Kozlovsky, Alan Liu, Zishun Qiao, Masaki Tsutsumi, Chris Hall, Satonori Nozawa, Mark Lester, Evgenia Belova, Johan Kero, Patrick J. Espy, Robert E. Hibbins, and Nicholas Mitchell
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6509–6532, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6509-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6509-2021, 2021
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Wind observations at the edge to space, 70–110 km altitude, are challenging. Meteor radars have become a widely used instrument to obtain mean wind profiles above an instrument for these heights. We describe an advanced mathematical concept and present a tomographic analysis using several meteor radars located in Finland, Sweden and Norway, as well as Chile, to derive the three-dimensional flow field. We show an example of a gravity wave decelerating the mean flow.
Gunter Stober, Ales Kuchar, Dimitry Pokhotelov, Huixin Liu, Han-Li Liu, Hauke Schmidt, Christoph Jacobi, Kathrin Baumgarten, Peter Brown, Diego Janches, Damian Murphy, Alexander Kozlovsky, Mark Lester, Evgenia Belova, Johan Kero, and Nicholas Mitchell
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13855–13902, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13855-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13855-2021, 2021
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Little is known about the climate change of wind systems in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere at the edge of space at altitudes from 70–110 km. Meteor radars represent a well-accepted remote sensing technique to measure winds at these altitudes. Here we present a state-of-the-art climatological interhemispheric comparison using continuous and long-lasting observations from worldwide distributed meteor radars from the Arctic to the Antarctic and sophisticated general circulation models.
Fabio Vargas, Jorge L. Chau, Harikrishnan Charuvil Asokan, and Michael Gerding
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13631–13654, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13631-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13631-2021, 2021
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We study large- and small-scale gravity wave cases observed in both airglow imagery and meteor radar data obtained during the SIMONe campaign carried out in early November 2018. We calculate the intrinsic features of several waves and estimate their impact in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere region via transferring energy and momentum to the atmosphere. We also associate cases of large-scale waves with secondary wave generation in the stratosphere.
Franz-Josef Lübken and Josef Höffner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 3815–3836, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3815-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3815-2021, 2021
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We present a new concept for a cluster of lidars that allows us to measure time-resolved profiles of temperatures, winds, and aerosols in the entire middle atmosphere for the first time, also covering regional horizontal scales (
four-dimensional coverage). Measurements are performed during day and night. The essential component is a newly developed laser with unprecedented performance. We present the first measurements. New observational capabilities in atmospheric physics are established.
Gunter Stober, Diego Janches, Vivien Matthias, Dave Fritts, John Marino, Tracy Moffat-Griffin, Kathrin Baumgarten, Wonseok Lee, Damian Murphy, Yong Ha Kim, Nicholas Mitchell, and Scott Palo
Ann. Geophys., 39, 1–29, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-39-1-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-39-1-2021, 2021
Gunter Stober, Kathrin Baumgarten, John P. McCormack, Peter Brown, and Jerry Czarnecki
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 11979–12010, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11979-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11979-2020, 2020
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This paper presents a first cross-comparison of meteor ground-based observations and a meteorological analysis (NAVGEM-HA) to compare a seasonal climatology of winds and temperatures at the mesosphere/lower thermosphere. The validation is insofar unique as we not only compare the mean state but also provide a detailed comparison of the short time variability of atmospheric tidal waves. Our analysis questions previous results claiming the importance of lunar tides.
Leonie Bernet, Elmar Brockmann, Thomas von Clarmann, Niklaus Kämpfer, Emmanuel Mahieu, Christian Mätzler, Gunter Stober, and Klemens Hocke
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 11223–11244, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11223-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-11223-2020, 2020
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With global warming, water vapour increases in the atmosphere. Water vapour is an important gas because it is a natural greenhouse gas and affects the formation of clouds, rain and snow. How much water vapour increases can vary in different regions of the world. To verify if it increases as expected on a regional scale, we analysed water vapour measurements in Switzerland. We found that water vapour generally increases as expected from temperature changes, except in winter.
Franziska Schranz, Jonas Hagen, Gunter Stober, Klemens Hocke, Axel Murk, and Niklaus Kämpfer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 20, 10791–10806, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-10791-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-20-10791-2020, 2020
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We measured middle-atmospheric ozone, water vapour and zonal and meridional wind with two ground-based microwave radiometers which are located at Ny-Alesund, Svalbard, in the Arctic. In this article we present measurements of the small-scale horizontal ozone gradients during winter 2018/2019. We found a distinct seasonal variation of the ozone gradients which is linked to the planetary wave activity. We further present the signatures of the SSW in the ozone, water vapour and wind measurements.
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Short summary
We describe the first comparative study of noctilucent clouds (NLCs) and mesospheric summer echoes at midlatitudes. Therefore, this study compares fresh clouds (small particles) with fully evolved clouds in the mesosphere, hinting at their evolution. It is shown that, in contrast to higher latitudes, here only a thin layer of fresh particles exist above the NLCs. This gives evidence that NLCs are not formed locally but are typically advected. This needs to be acknowledged in trend studies.
We describe the first comparative study of noctilucent clouds (NLCs) and mesospheric summer...
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