Waves with period near 3 days in the equatorial mesosphere and lower thermosphere over Ascension Island

P T Younger, N J Mitchell

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14 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

A meteor radar was deployed on Ascension Island (8 degrees S, 14 degrees W) in the equatorial mid-Atlantic in 2001. Routine operation started in October of that year. The radar has been used to measure horizontal winds in the equatorial mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) region over the interval October 2001-October 2002. Here. we present results concerning atmospheric waves with periods between similar to 2 and 4 days-a period range which includes 3-day, planetary-scale, ultra-fast Kelvin waves. The observations reveal that in this period range, the wave field is highly variable and, although it displays clear signatures of ultra-fast Kelvin waves, such waves are intermittent and make a relatively minor contribution to the total wave activity at periods near 3 days during this year. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)369-378
Number of pages10
JournalJournal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics
Volume68
Issue number3-5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2006

Bibliographical note

ID number: ISI:000236309500011

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