Large-scale circulation of atomic oxygen in the upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere

The variability of the atomic oxygen green line airglow at 557.7 nm, originating from the O(1S) level, has a long history of observation. Only recently, global observations of the oxygen airglow, interpreted with the help of global circulation models have provided some understanding. Satellite observations of winds and temperatures clearly demonstrate the dynamical influence of tides on the daily variations. Both annual and semi-annual components of the variation have been identified as occurring over the course of the year. From the large-scale circulation of the atmosphere one expects downwelling in the winter at high latitudes, causing enhanced atomic oxygen and enhanced airglow while the opposite is expected in summer. In the present investigation a search is made for this large-scale signature using data from the WIND Imaging Interferometer on the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite, model results from the Thermosphere–Ionosphere–Mesosphere-Electrodynamics-Global Circulation Model, and earlier published results. A well-defined semi-annual variation of emission rate is found in the tropics, apparently the result of the semi-annual variation of the diurnal tide. Annual and semi-annual patterns are found at mid-latitudes, in satellite and model data, while ground-based observations detect only an annual variation, with a maximum in the autumn. At still higher latitudes the fall peak persists, but with a deep depletion of atomic oxygen in the springtime; this appears to be the signature of the large-scale circulation.