Perturbation theory in thermosphere dynamics

Abstract

It is shown that density and pressure throughout the thermosphere can be adequately described in a logarithmic expansion that provides a sound basis for the application of perturbation theory. This expansion eliminates most of the important nonlinearities associated with density variations. On the basis of this expansion, the validity of perturbation theory can be extended to cover a large variety of atmospheric conditions in which the relative temperature amplitude is less than 0.5 and wind velocities are significantly less than the speed of sound.