Investigation of the solar activity and QBO effects on the near-space environment

Abstract

Based on the wavelet method, we investigate the solar activity and quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) signals in the near-space environment by using the modern-era retrospective analysis for research and applications, version-2 data and sounding of the atmosphere using broadband emission radiometry (SABER) onboard the thermosphere, ionosphere, mesosphere energetics, and dynamics satellite (TIMED/SABER). The results indicate that the annual variation mainly dominates from stratosphere to mesosphere at middle latitudes, which is more significant and stable in the southern hemisphere. Moreover, the temperature of top near space is affected by the solar activity, and it can vary over 5 K inner one solar cycle. The QBO signal is obviously seen in the stratospheric zonal wind and temperature, which is obviously existed only at a narrow latitude band between 10°S and 10°N, and its altitude range above the equator region is 20–40 km, while it turns to be 20–30 km over 10°S and 10°N, but seemly not existed in the mesosphere. Generally, our results would help to understand the influence of solar activity and QBO.