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Atmosphere
Special Issues
Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations
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Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Upper Atmosphere".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2020) | Viewed by 14829

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Nataliya V. Bakhmetieva

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Radiophysical Research Institute, Lobachevski State University of Nizhni Novgorod, 603950 Nizhni Novgorod, Russia
Interests: atmosphere; physics of the ionosphere; radio wave propagation; remote sensing; atmosphere dynamics; turbulence; sporadic E layers; atmosphere-ionosphere coupling; API technique
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Gennadiy I. Grigoriev

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Radiophysical Research Institute, Lobachevski State University of Nizhni Novgorod, 603105 Nizhni Novgorod, Russia
Interests: acoustic-gravity waves; atmosphere dynamics; diffusion; instability
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The aim of this Special Issue is to present the results of recent studies of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT), including new research techniques. This region, occupying the altitude range of 50–150 km, provides the interaction of the troposphere forming the weather and climate and the upper atmosphere, regulated by solar activity. The MLT is a transitional range from molecular to atomic gas. It is a highly dynamical turbulent and wave region. It is characterized by turbulent and wave phenomena of different spatial-temporal scales, affecting the parameters of plasma and neutral components of the Earth’s atmosphere. Properties of the mesosphere and the lower thermosphere can vary greatly under the impact of natural and artificial disturbances. In recent decades, new methods have been developed to study this region of the atmosphere. Methods involving artificial disturbances of high-frequency radio waves on the Earth’s ionosphere are among them. They allow one to determine many MLT parameters, such as the temperature and the density of the neutral component, the velocities of regular and turbulent movements, parameters of the turbulence, atmospheric waves, and the ionized component of the atmosphere. One of the methods is based on the creation of artificial periodic irregularities (API technique).

We invite you to submit your original research and review papers to this Special Issue. Research on the development of new methods for MLT diagnostics and new observation results are welcome. We hope to receive manuscripts on diagnostics of the parameters of neutral and plasma components of the MLT region. We encourage papers on the study of the neutral temperature, density, parameters of turbulence and atmospheric waves, and sporadic layers of ionization. Theoretical studies in these areas are also suitable. We offer the following topics (not an exhaustive list):

  • New methods for MLT research;
  • Exposure to powerful HF radio emission, including APIs creation;
  • Measurement of the neutral atmosphere parameters;
  • Spatial-temporal dependences of the MLT neutral temperature and density;
  • MLT dynamics: velocities of regular and turbulent motions;
  • Atmospheric turbulence parameters;
  • Acoustic-gravity waves;
  • Ionized layers in the lower thermosphere.

Dr. Nataliya V. Bakhmetieva
Dr. Gennadiy I. Grigoriev
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • mesosphere and lower thermosphere
  • methods of observation and diagnostics
  • HF radio emission
  • artificial periodic irregularities
  • regular and turbulent dynamics
  • acoustic-gravity waves
  • neutral temperature and density
  • parameters of the turbulence on the MLT region
  • ionized layers

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 9509 KiB  
Article
A Comparison of Meteor Radar Observation over China Region with Horizontal Wind Model (HWM14)
by Qiong Tang, Yufeng Zhou, Zhitao Du, Chen Zhou, Jiandong Qiao, Yi Liu and Guanyi Chen
Atmosphere 2021, 12(1), 98; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos12010098 - 11 Jan 2021
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2920
Abstract
This paper compares the wind fields measured by the meteor radar at Mohe, Beijing, Wuhan, and Sanya stations and horizontal wind model (HWM14) predictions. HWM14 appears to successfully reproduce the height-time distribution of the monthly mean zonal winds, although large discrepancies occur in [...] Read more.
This paper compares the wind fields measured by the meteor radar at Mohe, Beijing, Wuhan, and Sanya stations and horizontal wind model (HWM14) predictions. HWM14 appears to successfully reproduce the height-time distribution of the monthly mean zonal winds, although large discrepancies occur in wind speed between the model and measurement, especially in the summer and winter months. For meridional wind, the consistency between model prediction and radar observation is worse than that of zonal wind. The consistency between radar measurements and model prediction at Sanya station is worse than other sites located at higher latitudes. Harmonic analysis reveals large discrepancies in diurnal, semidiurnal, and terdiurnal tides extracted from meteor radar observations and HWM14 predictions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations)
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18 pages, 3866 KiB  
Article
Seasonal Variations of High-Frequency Gravity Wave Momentum Fluxes and Their Forcing toward Zonal Winds in the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere over Langfang, China (39.4° N, 116.7° E)
by Caixia Tian, Xiong Hu, Yurong Liu, Xuan Cheng, Zhaoai Yan and Bing Cai
Atmosphere 2020, 11(11), 1253; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11111253 - 20 Nov 2020
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1888
Abstract
Meteor radar data collected over Langfang, China (39.4° N, 116.7° E) were used to estimate the momentum flux of short-period (less than 2 h) gravity waves (GWs) in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT), using the Hocking (2005) analysis technique. Seasonal variations in [...] Read more.
Meteor radar data collected over Langfang, China (39.4° N, 116.7° E) were used to estimate the momentum flux of short-period (less than 2 h) gravity waves (GWs) in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT), using the Hocking (2005) analysis technique. Seasonal variations in GW momentum flux exhibited annual oscillation (AO), semiannual oscillation (SAO), and quasi-4-month oscillation. Quantitative estimations of GW forcing toward the mean zonal flow were provided using the determined GW momentum flux. The mean flow acceleration estimated from the divergence of this flux was compared with the observed acceleration of zonal winds displaying SAO and quasi-4-month oscillations. These comparisons were used to analyze the contribution of zonal momentum fluxes of SAO and quasi-4-month oscillations to zonal winds. The estimated acceleration from high-frequency GWs was in the same direction as the observed acceleration of zonal winds for quasi-4-month oscillation winds, with GWs contributing more than 69%. The estimated acceleration due to Coriolis forces to the zonal wind was studied; the findings were opposite to the estimated acceleration of high-frequency GWs for quasi-4-month oscillation winds. The significance of this study lies in estimating and quantifying the contribution of the GW momentum fluxes to zonal winds with quasi-4-month periods over mid-latitude regions for the first time. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations)
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8 pages, 800 KiB  
Article
Generation of Internal Gravity Waves in the Thermosphere during Operation of the SURA Facility under Parametric Resonance Conditions
by Gennadiy I. Grigoriev, Victor G. Lapin and Elena E. Kalinina
Atmosphere 2020, 11(11), 1169; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11111169 - 29 Oct 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1404
Abstract
The problem of excitation of internal gravity waves (IGWs) in the upper atmosphere by an external source of a limited duration of operation is investigated. An isothermal atmosphere was chosen as the propagation environment of IGWs in the presence of a uniform wind [...] Read more.
The problem of excitation of internal gravity waves (IGWs) in the upper atmosphere by an external source of a limited duration of operation is investigated. An isothermal atmosphere was chosen as the propagation environment of IGWs in the presence of a uniform wind that changes over time according to the harmonic law. For the vertical component of the displacement of an environment, the Mathieu equation with zero initial conditions was solved with the right part simulating the effect of a powerful heating facility on the ionosphere. In the case of a small amplitude of the variable component of the wind, the time dependence of the vertical displacement under parametric resonance conditions using the perturbation method is obtained. The obtained dependence of the solution of the differential equation on the parameters allows us to perform a numerical analysis of the problem in the case of variable wind of arbitrary amplitude. For practical estimations of the obtained values, data on the operating modes of the SURA heating facility (56.15° N, 46.11° E) with periodic (15–30 min) switching on during of 2–3 h for ionosphere impact were used. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations)
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25 pages, 5368 KiB  
Article
Mesosphere Ozone and the Lower Ionosphere under Plasma Disturbance by Powerful High-Frequency Radio Emission
by Nataliya V. Bakhmetieva, Yuri Yu. Kulikov and Ilia N. Zhemyakov
Atmosphere 2020, 11(11), 1154; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11111154 - 26 Oct 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3823
Abstract
We present the results of experiments on the Earth’s lower ionosphere at mesospheric heights by creating artificial periodic irregularities (APIs) of the ionospheric plasma and simultaneous measurement of the atmospheric emission spectrum in the ozone line by ground-based microwave radiometry when the ionosphere [...] Read more.
We present the results of experiments on the Earth’s lower ionosphere at mesospheric heights by creating artificial periodic irregularities (APIs) of the ionospheric plasma and simultaneous measurement of the atmospheric emission spectrum in the ozone line by ground-based microwave radiometry when the ionosphere was disturbed by powerful high-frequency radio emission from the midlatitude SURA heating facility (56.15° N; 46.11° E). The diagnostics of the ionosphere was carried out on the basis of measuring amplitudes and phases of signals scattered by periodic irregularities in the altitude range of 50–130 km. For each heating session lasting 30 min, two ozone spectra were measured. These spectra were compared with the measured spectra the periods when heating was turned off. During the heating session of the ionosphere, a decrease in the intensity of the microwave radiation of the atmosphere in the ozone line was observed. The lower ionosphere was characterized by intense dynamics. Rapid variations in the amplitude of the scattered signal and the relaxation time of artificial periodic irregularities were observed. The velocity of a regular vertical movement in the D-region of the ionosphere constantly varied direction with average minute values up to 4–5 m/s. We assume the decrease in the ozone emission spectrum at the altitude of 60 km can be explained by an increase in the coefficient of electron attachment to oxygen molecules during heating sessions. The lower boundary of the region enriched with atomic oxygen was estimated from the height profile of the API relaxation time. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations)
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14 pages, 4207 KiB  
Article
Meteorological Storm Influence on the Ionosphere Parameters
by Olga Borchevkina, Ivan Karpov and Mikhail Karpov
Atmosphere 2020, 11(9), 1017; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11091017 - 22 Sep 2020
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2418
Abstract
This paper presents the observations of ionospheric parameters in Kaliningrad (54° N, 20° E) during a meteorological storm in the Baltic Sea during October 2017 and 2018. Analysis of the total electronic content (TEC) during the storm showed that perturbations of the TEC [...] Read more.
This paper presents the observations of ionospheric parameters in Kaliningrad (54° N, 20° E) during a meteorological storm in the Baltic Sea during October 2017 and 2018. Analysis of the total electronic content (TEC) during the storm showed that perturbations of the TEC values from the median can reach two standard deviations of the value. For the critical frequency of the F2 layer, it was 1.5–1.6 times the standard deviations. On days of a meteorological storm, significant changes were noted in the dynamics of the E-layer’s critical frequency. The reasons for the occurrence of the observed phenomena were due to the propagation of acoustic-gravity waves generated by convective processes in the lower atmosphere during periods of a meteorological storm. Spectral analysis of TEC variations revealed an increase in the amplitudes of ionospheric variations 10–16 min over the area of a meteorological storm. The analysis allowed us to conclude that ionospheric perturbations during the meteorological perturbation were caused by increased acoustic-gravity wave (AGW) generation processes in the lower atmosphere. The most likely cause of negative ionospheric disturbances were processes associated with the dissipation of AGW propagating from the area of a meteorological storm and increased turbulence in the lower thermosphere. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations)
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14 pages, 362 KiB  
Article
On the Diagnosis of Unidirectional Acoustic Waves as Applied to the Measurement of Atmospheric Parameters by the API Method in the SURA Experiment
by Sergey Leble, Sergey Vereshchagin, Nataliya V. Bakhmetieva and Gennadiy I. Grigoriev
Atmosphere 2020, 11(9), 924; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos11090924 - 29 Aug 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1541
Abstract
The problem of wave identification is formulated as applied to the results of measurements of the temperature and the density of the neutral atmosphere in the range height 90–120 km by the artificial periodic irregularities (APIs) technique. The technique is based on the [...] Read more.
The problem of wave identification is formulated as applied to the results of measurements of the temperature and the density of the neutral atmosphere in the range height 90–120 km by the artificial periodic irregularities (APIs) technique. The technique is based on the resonant scattering of radio waves by artificial periodic irregularities of the ionospheric plasma emerging in the field of a standing wave arising from the interference of the incident and reflected waves from the ionosphere. APIs were created using SURA heating facility (named as SURA experiment). The acoustic wave theory is reformulated on the base of data which can be observed in the given experimental setup. The basic system of equations is reduced so that it accounts only upward and downward directed waves, ignoring entropy mode. The algorithm of wave identification based on usage of dynamic projection operators for such a reduced case is proposed and explicit form of projection operators is derived. Its application to finite number dataset via Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) is described and results of its application to the DFT-transformed set of experimental observation of the temperature and density perturbations are presented. The result yields hybrid amplitudes, that allow us to calculate energy of the directed waves that enter the observed superposition. The problem of entropy mode detection is discussed, the corresponding projecting operators for the full evolution system are built and a way to apply the method to quantification of it is proposed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere: New Diagnostic Methods and Recent Observations)
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