Thermosphere zonal winds - Vertical motions and temperature as measured from Dynamics Explorer
Dynamics Explorer 2 has made possible, for the first time, global extent in situ measurements of upper thermosphere neutral particle winds. Zonal and vertical wind components, and the kinetic temperature, are being measured by the Wind and Temperature Spectrometer (WATS), while the Fabry-Perot Interferometer provides the meridional component. The present investigation is concerned with the zonal wind component, the vertical motions, and the temperature measured by the WATS. Preliminary studies of the neutral zonal wind components conducted for many orbits confirm a global pattern of upper thermosphere winds which blow over the earth from the mid-afternoon sector. Velocities range from near zero to a few hundred meters per second. Major perturbations to the basic thermally driven wind patterns are observed in both polar regions where the directions are frequently reversed and where the zonal velocities sometimes exceed 1 km/sec.