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Detailed Reference Information |
Potter, W.E., Kayser, D.C. and Mauersberger, K. (1976). Direct measurements of neutral wave characteristics in the thermosphere. Journal of Geophysical Research 81: doi: 10.1029/JA081i028p05002. issn: 0148-0227. |
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Waves in the neutral upper atmosphere have been measured by the open source neutral mass spectrometer (Oss) during both the elliptical and the circular phases of the Atmosphere Explorer-C mission. Typical peak-to-peak wave amplitudes seen in [N2> are 30%, although amplitudes of 55% have been recorded. The amplitudes are mass dependent, Ar showing the largest perturbation. Helium is typically found to be out of phase with the heavier constituents. A survey of Oss data from 338 circular orbits shows that the highest wave amplitudes and the greatest number of occurrences are found in both the northern and the southern high-latitude regions. The near-simultaneous measurements of waves in both hemisphere at high latitudes also point toward a source related to conjugate phenomena. A possible second class of lower-amplitude waves peaks at high latitudes; however, a secondary peak near ¿25¿ magnetic latitude may be due to waves generated near the equatorial region. A study of wave amplitudes and occurrences during a magnetic storm shows a possible transpolar propagation of waves from a magnetically active region near local midnight. The assumption of horizontal propagation would explain the observed high-latitude distribution of large-amplitude waves. The results of this study are compared with previous measurements of neutral wave structure. |
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Publisher
American Geophysical Union 2000 Florida Avenue N.W. Washington, D.C. 20009-1277 USA 1-202-462-6900 1-202-328-0566 service@agu.org |
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