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Merkel et al. 2003
Merkel, A.W., Thomas, G.E., Palo, S.E. and Bailey, S.M. (2003). Observations of the 5-day planetary wave in PMC measurements from the Student Nitric Oxide Explorer Satellite. Geophysical Research Letters 30: doi: 10.1029/2002GL016524. issn: 0094-8276.

The Student Nitric Oxide Explorer (SNOE) satellite has been observing Polar Mesospheric Clouds (PMCs) since 1998 and has successfully measured seven PMC seasons. In the summer seasons, the Ultraviolet Spectrometer (UVS) limb measurements include detections of PMCs between 80 -- 90 km. SNOE observations of PMCs have a significant advantage over other PMC measurements in that it can observe them globally each day. Because SNOE orbits the earth 15 times a day, daily global images of PMC brightness may be produced. Variations in the PMC brightness with a 5-day period are observed from the measurements. The 5-day wave is observed in both the northern and southern hemisphere polar summers at high latitudes. This is the first direct global scale wave analysis performed on PMC measurements and indicates the effects of dynamics on PMC formation.

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Abstract

Keywords
Atmospheric Composition and Structure, Cloud physics and chemistry, Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics, Mesospheric dynamics, Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics, Middle atmosphere dynamics (0341, 0342), Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics, Waves and tides
Journal
Geophysical Research Letters
http://www.agu.org/journals/gl/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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