“…These newly formed electrons are transported in the thermosphere where they lose their kinetic energy in elastic, inelastic, and ionization collisions with the ambient atmospheric gas: where E and E′ (< E ) are the kinetic energies of the primary electron before and after a collision; X = CO 2 , CO, O, or N 2 ; X * and X + are atmospheric species in excited and ionized states, respectively; and E s is the energy of the secondary electron formed in the ionizing collision. We consider the following neutral and ionized excited states for the main atmospheric species: (1) excitation and dissociative excitation of CO 2 * = CO 2 ( v (010), v (100), v (001), electronic states at 8.6, 9.3, 11.1, 12.4, and 13.6 eV [see, e.g., Sawada et al , 1972a]; (2) direct ionization of CO 2 → CO 2 + ( X 2 Π, A 2 Π, B 2 Σ, C 2 Σ); (3) dissociative ionization of CO 2 → CO + + O, O + + CO, C + + O 2 ; (4) excitation of CO* = CO( a 3 Π, A 1 Π, electronic state at 13.5 eV [see, e.g., Sawada et al , 1972b]; (5) direct ionization of CO → CO + ( X 2 Σ, A 2 Π, B 2 Σ); (6) dissociative ionization of CO → C + + O, O + + C; (7) excitation of O* = O( 1 D − 1.96 eV, 1 S − 4.17eV, 3s 5 S 0 − 9.29 eV, 3s 3 S 0 − 9.53 eV, 3p 5 P 0 − 10.76 eV, 3p 3 P 0 − 10.97 eV, 3d 3 D 0 −12.07 eV, 3s 3 ' D 0 − 12.54 eV); (8) direct ionization of O → O + ( 4 S , 2 D , 2 P ); (9) direct ionization of N 2 → N 2 + ; (10) excitation and dissociative excitation of N 2 * ; and (11) dissociative ionization of N 2 → N + + N.…”