Solar influence on mesospheric water vapor with impact on NLCs

Sonnemann, G. R.; Grygalashvyly, M.

doi:10.1016/j.jastp.2004.07.026

Cited by 31 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Khosravi et al (2002) found an increase of 15% at 80 km and 801S for January conditions using the SOCRATES 2-D model. Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly (2005) reported a solar cycle H 2 O variation of $20% at 83 km and 67.51N for mid-summer conditions from calculations with the COMMA/IAP 3-D model, and noted a strong seasonal dependence. In contrast to these results, von Zahn et al…”

Section: Solar Cycle Effectsmentioning

confidence: 98%

A quarter-century of satellite polar mesospheric cloud observations

DeLand

Shettle

Thomas

et al. 2006

Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics

111

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Section: Solar Cycle Effectsmentioning

confidence: 98%

A quarter-century of satellite polar mesospheric cloud observations

DeLand

Shettle

Thomas

et al. 2006

Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…In addition, until today his predictions can not be verified by any relevant observations of water vapour in the NLC region. Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly (2004) were the first to show that modern 3-D dynamic models predict a rather different reaction of the upper mesosphere water vapour to solar Lyman α than Garcia (1989). Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly (2004) show that the H 2 O mixing ratio at 80 km in the Arctic summer varies by only a few percent between maximum and minimum Lyman α flux conditions.…”

Section: Solar Lyman α Variations and Alomar Observations Of Nlc Brigmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly (2004) were the first to show that modern 3-D dynamic models predict a rather different reaction of the upper mesosphere water vapour to solar Lyman α than Garcia (1989). Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly (2004) show that the H 2 O mixing ratio at 80 km in the Arctic summer varies by only a few percent between maximum and minimum Lyman α flux conditions. As would be expected, the mixing ratio above 80 km responds more strongly to variations in solar Lyman α, but how this is reflected in the properties of NLC was not calculated by these authors.…”

Section: Solar Lyman α Variations and Alomar Observations Of Nlc Brigmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…4 in Berger and von Zahn, 2002) we now use the explicit data base of photolysis rates from the original chemistry module of COMMA/IAP as described by e.g. Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly (2004). In our icy particle module, the saturation pressure of water vapour is taken from Mauersberger and Krankowsky (2003).…”

Section: Solar Lyman α Variations and Alomar Observations Of Nlc Brigmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Noctilucent clouds and the mesospheric water vapour: the past decade

et al. 2004

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Abstract. The topic of this paper is the sensitivity of the brightness of noctilucent clouds (NLC) on the ambient water vapour mixing ratio f(H 2 O). Firstly, we use state-of-the-art models of NLC layer formation to predict NLC brightness changes in response to changes in the 80 km mixing ratio f(H 2 O) for the two cases of ground-based 532 nm lidar observations at 69 • N and for hemispheric satellite SBUV observations at 252 nm wavelength. In this study, we include a re-evaluation of the sensitivity of NLC brightness to changes in solar Lyman α flux. Secondly, we review observations of episodic changes in f(H 2 O) and those in NLC brightness, the former being available since 1992, the latter since 1979. To this review, we add a new series of observations of f(H 2 O), performed in the Arctic summer at the ALOMAR observatory. The episodic change exhibited by the Arctic summer means of f(H 2 O) turns out to be quite different from all those derived from annual means of f(H 2 O). The latter indicate that since 1996 a significant reduction of annually averaged upper mesospheric water vapour has occurred at low, mid, and high latitudes. These decreases of f(H 2 O) have been observed over the same time period in which a slow increase of SBUV NLC albedo has occurred. From this scenario and additional arguments we conclude that the cause for the observed long-term increase in NLC albedo remains to be identified. We close with comments on the very different character of decadal variations in NLC brightness and occurrence rate.

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“…These clouds are composed primarily of water ice particles (Hervig et al, 2001;Eremenko et al, 2005). In the atmospheric region where they form, the pressure is about one hundred thousand times less at the surface and the air may be as much as a million times drier than the surface desert air (Sonnemann and Grygalashvyly, 2005), so extremely low temperatures are essential to allow the PMC formation. Such conditions only occur at the summertime polar mesopause, which is the coldest place on earth with minimum temperatures below 140 K (Lübken, 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

First climatology of polar mesospheric clouds from GOMOS/ENVISAT stellar occultation instrument

et al. 2010

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Abstract. GOMOS (Global OzoneMonitoring by Occultation of Stars), on board the European platform ENVISAT launched in 2002, is a stellar occultation instrument combining four spectrometers and two fast photometers which measure light at 1 kHz sampling rate in the two visible channels 470-520 nm and 650-700 nm. On the day side, GO-MOS does not measure only the light from the star, but also the solar light scattered by the atmospheric molecules. In the summer polar days, Polar Mesospheric Clouds (PMC) are clearly detected using the photometers signals, as the solar light scattered by the cloud particles in the instrument field of view. The sun-synchronous orbit of ENVISAT allows observing PMC in both hemispheres and the stellar occultation technique ensures a very good geometrical registration. Four years of data, from 2002 to 2006, are analyzed up to now. GOMOS data set consists of approximately 10 000 cloud observations all over the eight PMC seasons studied. The first climatology obtained by the analysis of this data set is presented, focusing on the seasonal and latitudinal coverage, represented by global maps. GOMOS photometers allow a very sensitive PMC detection, showing a frequency of occurrence of 100% in polar regions during the middle of the PMC season. According to this work mesospheric clouds seem to be more frequent in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere. The PMC altitude distribution was also calculated. The obtained median values are 82.7 km in the North and 83.2 km in the South.

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Solar influence on mesospheric water vapor with impact on NLCs

Cited by 31 publications

References 28 publications

A quarter-century of satellite polar mesospheric cloud observations

A quarter-century of satellite polar mesospheric cloud observations

Noctilucent clouds and the mesospheric water vapour: the past decade

First climatology of polar mesospheric clouds from GOMOS/ENVISAT stellar occultation instrument

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