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Article
Observation and Modeling of Gravity Wave Propagation through Reflection and Critical Layers above Andes Lidar Observatory at Cerro Pachón, Chile
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
  • Bing Cao, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • Christopher J. Heale, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • Yafang Guo, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • Alan Z. Liu, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
  • Jonathan B. Snively, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Submitting Campus
Daytona Beach
Department
Physical Sciences
Document Type
Article
Publication/Presentation Date
11-8-2016
Disciplines
Abstract/Description

A complex gravity wave event was observed from 04:30 to 08:10 UTC on 16 January 2015 by a narrow-band sodium lidar and an all-sky airglow imager located at Andes Lidar Observatory (ALO) in Cerro Pachón (30.25∘S, 70.73∘W), Chile. The gravity wave packet had a period of 18–35 min and a horizontal wavelength of about 40–50 km. Strong enhancements of the vertical wind perturbation, exceeding10 m s−1, were found at ∼90 km and ∼103 km, consistent with nearly evanescent wave behavior near a reflection layer. A reduction in vertical wavelength was found as the phase speed approached the background wind speed near ∼93 km. A distinct three-layered structure was observed in the lidar data due to refraction of the wave packet. A fully nonlinear model was used to simulate this event, which successfully reproduced the amplitudes and layered structure seen in observations. The model results provide dynamical insight, suggesting that a double reflection occurring at two separate heights caused the large vertical wind amplitudes, while the three-layered structure in the temperature perturbation was a result of relatively stable regions at those altitudes. The event provides a clear perspective on the filtering processes to which short-period, small-scale gravity waves are subject in mesosphere and lower thermosphere.

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/2016JD025173
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
Grant or Award Name
NSF grants AGS-1110199 and AGS-1115249, NSFC grant 41274154, NSF grant AGS-1344356, NSF grant AGS-1229085, NSF grants AGS-1136278 and AGS-1136208
Citation Information
Cao, B., C. J. Heale, Y. Guo, A. Z. Liu, and J. B. Snively (2016), Observation and modeling of gravity wave propagation through reflection and critical layers above Andes Lidar Observatory at Cerro Pachón, Chile, J. Geophys. Res. Atmos., 121, 12,737–12,750, doi:10.1002/2016JD025173