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At least 199 records · Page 11
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NASA NTRS2014

Diurnal Variations of Stratospheric Ozone Measured by Ground-Based Microwave Remote Sensing at the Mauna Loa NDACC Site: Measurement Validation and GEOSCCM Model Comparison

There is presently renewed interest in diurnal variations of stratospheric and mesospheric ozone for the purpose of supporting homogenization of records of various ozone measurements that are limited by the technique employed to being made at certain times of day. We have made such measurements for 19 years using a passive microwave remote sensing technique at the Mauna Loa Observatory (MLO) in Hawaii, which is a primary station in the Network for Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change (NDACC). We have recently reprocessed these data with hourly time resolution to study diurnal variations. We inspected differences between pairs of the ozone spectra (e.g., day and night) from which the ozone profiles are derived to determine the extent to which they may be contaminated by diurnally varying systematic instrumental or measurement effects. These are small, and we have reduced them further by selecting data that meet certain criteria that we established. We have calculated differences between profiles measured at different times: morning-night, afternoon-night, and morning-afternoon and have intercompared these with like profiles derived from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (Aura-MLS), the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite Microwave Limb Sounder (UARS-MLS),t he Superconducting Submillimeter-Wave Limb-Emission Sounder (SMILES), and Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet version 2 (SBUV2) measurements. Differences between averages of coincident profiles are typically less than 1.5 percent of typical nighttime values over most of the covered altitude range with some exceptions. We calculated averages of ozone values for each hour from the Mauna Loa microwave data, and normalized these to the average for the first hour after midnight for comparison with corresponding values calculated with the Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry Climate Model (GEOSCCM). We found that the measurements and model output mostly agree to better than 1.5 percent of the midnight value, with one noteworthy exception: The measured morning-night values are significantly (2-3 percent) higher than the modeled ones from 3.2 to 1.8 hPa (approximately 39-43 km), and there is evidence that the measured values are increasing compared to the modeled values before sunrise in this region.

GEOSCCM model comparison↗
NASA NTRS1988

The Lyman-alpha line in various solar features. I - Observations

Lyman-alpha line observations of the solar atmosphere obtained by the SMM ultraviolet spectrometer and polarimeter are presented. High spectral and spatial resolution data and broadband spectroheliograms show that, on the disk, the central reversal of the line is highly variable in depth and is frequently shifted, leading to asymmetric profiles. It is suggested that a dynamic layer overlying the limb may be responsible for distorting the background profile of the line and producing the observed asymmetric profiles. Narrow and extended prominences reaching velocities of several hundred km/sec are also noted.

Fontenla, J.↗
NASA NTRS2022

Combined UV and IR Ozone Profile Retrieval from TROPOMI and CrIS Measurements

Vertical ozone profiles from combined spectral measurements in the ultraviolet and infrared spectral range were retrieved by using data from the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument on the Sentinel-5 Precursor (TROPOMI/S5P) and the Cross-track Infrared Sounder on the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (CrIS/Suomi-NPP), which are flying in loose formation 3 min apart in the same orbit. A previous study of ozone profiles retrieved exclusively from TROPOMI UV spectra showed that the vertical resolution in the troposphere is clearly limited (Mettig et al., 2021). The vertical resolution and the vertical extent of the ozone profiles is improved by combining both wavelength ranges compared to retrievals limited to UV or IR spectral data only. The combined retrieval particularly improves the accuracy of the retrieved tropospheric ozone and to a lesser degree stratospheric ozone up to 30 km. An increase in the degrees of freedom (DOF) by 1 DOF was found in the UV + IR retrieval compared to the UV-only retrieval. Compared to previous publications, which investigated combinations of UV and IR observations from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument and Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (OMI and TES) and Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment version 2 and Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (GOME-2 and IASI) pairs, the degree of freedom is lower, which is attributed to the reduced spectral resolution of CrIS compared to TES or IASI. Tropospheric lidar and ozonesondes were used to validate the ozone profiles and tropospheric ozone content (TOC). In their comparison with tropospheric lidars, both ozone profiles and TOCs show smaller biases for the retrieved data from the combined UV + IR observation than from the UV observations alone. For the ozone profiles below 10 km, the mean differences are around ±10 % and the mean TOC varies around ±3 DU. We show that TOCs from the combined retrieval agree better with ozonesonde results at northern latitudes than the UV-only and IR-only retrievals and also have lower scatter. In the tropics, the IR-only retrieval shows the best agrement with TOCs derived from ozonesondes. While in general the TOCs show good agreement with ozonesonde data, the profiles have a positive bias of around 30 % between 10 and 15 km. The reason is probably a positive stratospheric bias from the IR retrieval. The comparison of the UV + IR and UV ozone profiles up to 30 km with the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) demonstrates the improvement of the UV + IR profile in the stratosphere above 18 km. In comparison to the UV-only approach the retrieval shows improvements of up to 10 % depending on latitude but can also show worse results in some regions and latitudes.

Ozone↗
NASA NTRS2009

On the Quality of the Nimbus 7 LIMS Version 6 Water Vapor Profiles and Distributions

This report describes the quality of the Nimbus 7 Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere (LIMS) water vapor (H2O) profiles of 1978/79 that were processed with a Version 6 (V6) algorithm and archived in 2002. The V6 profiles incorporate a better knowledge of the instrument attitude for the LIMS measurements along its orbits, leading to improvements for its temperature profiles and for the registration of its water vapor radiances with pressure. As a result, the LIMS V6 zonal-mean distributions of H2O exhibit better hemispheric symmetry than was the case from the original Version 5 (V5) dataset that was archived in 1982. Estimates of the precision and accuracy of the V6 H2O profiles are developed and provided. Individual profiles have a precision of order 5% and an estimated accuracy of about 19% at 3 hPa, 14% at 10 hPa, and 26% at 50 hPa. Profile segments within about 2 km of the tropopause are often affected by emissions from clouds that appear in the finite field-of-view of the detector for the LIMS H2O channel. Zonally-averaged distributions of the LIMS V6 H2O are compared with those from the more recent Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) satellite experiment for November, February, and May of 2004/2005. The patterns and values of their respective distributions are similar in many respects. Effects of a strengthened Brewer-Dobson circulation are indicated in the MLS distributions of the recent decade versus those of LIMS from 1978/79. A tropical tape recorder signal is present in the 7-month time series of LIMS V6 H2O with lowest values in February 1979, and the estimated, annually-averaged "entry-level" H2O is 3.5 to 3.8 ppmv. It is judged that this historic LIMS water vapor dataset is of good quality for studies of the near global-scale chemistry and transport for pressure levels from 3 hPa to about 70 to 100 hPa.

Remsberg, E. E.↗
NASA NTRS1984

The validation of Nimbus 7 LIMS measurements of ozone

Approximately seven and one half months of stratospheric ozone profiles have been processed from the LIMS (Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere) experiment on the Nimbus 7 satellite. Data profiles cover the stratosphere and mesosphere from 100 to 0.1 mbar and from 84 degrees N to 64 degrees S latitude. Topics covered include the ozone channel characteristics, precision, systematic uncertainties, and comparisons with data from balloon and rocket underflights, Umkehr soundings, and Dobson measurements. Comparisons with Dobson total ozone are made by integrating combined LIMS plus balloon profiles. The estimated on-orbit precision is 0.02-0.16 ppmv. Simulations of the experiment indicate potential systematic uncertainties ranging from 15 percent in the 1-mbar region to an upper limit of 40 percent at 100 mbar and 0.1 mbar. Results are well within the uncertainties for the correlative sensors themselves. LIMS detects significant vertical structure in the ozone profile even below the ozone mixing ratio peak. Several other comparisons showing good agreement are noted.

Remsberg, E. E.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Solar limb brightening at 820 microns

The sun in 820 micron radiation is mapped, and strong radial brightening of the intensity profile is found. The east and west limbs show an intensity excess of about twice that of the quiet north and south limbs. This may be attributable to active regions near the east and west limbs. The radial brightening observed is as strong as that observed by others at 1.3 mm, and much stronger than that observed at 350 microns by still others. A strong general increase in gradual radial brightening with wavelength longward of 350 microns is thus indicated, and this is attributed to variations in the character of chromospheric fine structure above the temperature minimum region.

Lindsey, C.↗
NASA NTRS2008

Kinetic Temperature and Carbon Dioxide from Broadband Infrared Limb Emission Measurements Taken from the TIMED/SABER Instrument

The Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER) experiment is one of four instruments on NASA's Thermosphere-Ionosphere-Energetics and Dynamics (TIMED) satellite. SABER measures broadband infrared limb emission and derives vertical profiles of kinetic temperature (Tk) from the lower stratosphere to approximately 120 km, and vertical profiles of carbon dioxide (CO2) volume mixing ratio (vmr) from approximately 70 km to 120 km. In this paper we report on SABER Tk/CO2 data in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) region from the version 1.06 dataset. The continuous SABER measurements provide an excellent dataset to understand the evolution and mechanisms responsible for the global two-level structure of the mesopause altitude. SABER MLT Tk comparisons with ground-based sodium lidar and rocket falling sphere Tk measurements are generally in good agreement. However, SABER CO2 data differs significantly from TIME-GCM model simulations. Indirect CO2 validation through SABER-lidar MLT Tk comparisons and SABER-radiation transfer comparisons of nighttime 4.3 micron limb emission suggest the SABER-derived CO2 data is a better representation of the true atmospheric MLT CO2 abundance compared to model simulations of CO2 vmr.

Mertens, Christopher J.↗
NASA NTRS2016

THz Limb Sounder (TLS) for Lower Thermospheric Wind, Oxygen Density, and Temperature

Neutral winds are one of the most critical measurements in the lower thermosphere and E region ionosphere (LTEI) for understanding complex electrodynamic processes and ion-neutral interactions. We are developing a high-sensitivity, low-power, noncryogenic 2.06 THz Schottky receiver to measure wind profiles at 100-140 km. The new technique, THz limb sounder (TLS), aims to measure LTEI winds by resolving the wind-induced Doppler shift of 2.06 THz atomic oxygen (OI) emissions. As a transition between fine structure levels in the ground electronic state, the OI emission is in local thermodynamic equilibrium(LTE) at altitudes up to 350km. This LTE property, together with day-and-night capability and small line-of-sight gradient, makes the OI limb sounding a very attractive technique for neutral wind observations. In addition to the wind measurement, TLS can also retrieve [OI] density and neutral temperature in the LTEI region. TLS leverages rapid advances in THz receiver technologies including subharmonically pumped (SHP)mixers and Schottky-diode-based power multipliers. Current SHP Schottky receivers have produced good sensitivity for THz frequencies at ambient environment temperatures (120-150 K), which are achievable through passively cooling in spaceflight. As an emerging technique, TLS can fill the critical data gaps in the LTEI neutral wind observations to enable detailed studies on the coupling and dynamo processes between charged and neutral molecules.

wind profiles↗
NASA NTRS1977

Orbiter Cloud Photopolarimeter for the Pioneer Venus mission

The Orbiter Cloud Photopolarimeter (OCPP) to be flown aboard the Pioneer Venus Orbiter spacecraft is described. This instrument, while in orbit about the planet Venus, will perform polarimetric and radiometric mapping of the Venus atmosphere in four spectral bands centered in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared regions. Additionally, the instrument is equipped to provide moderate resolution imaging of the time varying cloud patterns in the near ultraviolet. In another mode of operation the instrument is capable of profiling the atmosphere at the limb of the planet to measure the particulate layering. Information resulting from these measurements is intended to provide an understanding of the global cloud dynamics and the atmospheric structure and composition on Venus. The basic operation and functional elements of the instrument are discussed. The optical configuration incorporating a polarization analyzing technique with improved accuracy is described. Long-term and short-term calibration techniques along with expected instrument performance characteristics are summarized.

Russell, E. E.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Nimbus-7 Stratospheric and Mesospheric Sounder (SAMS) experiment data user's guide

The Stratospheric and Mesospheric Sounder (SAMS) aboard Nimbus-7 observes infrared radiation from the atmospheric limb. Global upper atmosphere temperature profiles and vertical concentrations of H2O, NO, N2O, CH4 and CO2 are derived from these measurements. The status of all channels was carefully monitored. Temperature and composition were retrieved from the measurements by linearizing the direct equation about an a priori profile and using an optimum statistical estimator to find the most likely solution. The derived temperature and composition profiles are archived on two tape products whose file structure and record formats are described in detail. The gridded retrieved temperature tape (GRID-T) contains daily day and night average temperatures at 62 pressure levels in a 2.5 degree latitude by 10 degree longitude grid extending from 67.5 degrees N to 50 degrees S. The zonal mean methane and nitrous oxide composition tape (ZMT-G) contains zonal mean day and night average CH4 and N2O mixing ratios at 31 pressure levels for 2.5 degrees latitude zones extending from 67.5 degrees N to 50 degrees S.

Taylor, F. W.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Photometric functions for photoclinometry and other applications

The simpler Minnaert and lunar-Lambert functions, which are needed to reduce the number of unknown parameters in photoclinometry, are presently given least-squares fits to the brightness profiles across a disk, or 'limb darkening', described by Hapke's photometric function. The variation of limb darkening with single-scattering albedo and the particle-phase function's asymmetry factor are reduced of eliminated when the Hapke parameters are in the range representative of most planetary surfaces, thereby simplifying the problem of photoclinometry across terrains with variable surface materials.

Mcewen, Alfred S.↗
NASA NTRS1992

The formation of helioseismology lines. III - Partial redistribution effects in weak solar resonance lines

This paper investigates the formation of the Na I D2, K I 769.9 nm and Ba II 455.4 nm resonance lines in the solar atmosphere allowing for partial frequency redistribution (PRD). We show that the influence of PRD is negligible on the solar disk in all three lines for a model of the average quiet-Sun, and even for the more extreme case of a model with a steeper photospheric temperature decline. At the solar limb PRD does affect the intensity profile of the Na I and Ba II resonance lines, but not that of the K I line. Finally, we find that effects of PRD are more pronounced at the limb in the Na I D2 and Ba II 455.4 nm lines when the photospheric temperature gradient is steep.

Uitenbroek, H.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Faint object camera observations of the shape and expansion of SN 1987A

A comparison is made between HST Faint-Object Camera visible and near-IR imagery of SN 1987A obtained 1754 days after outburst and those obtained after 1278 days. The SN has dimmed by a factor of 0.35 +/- 0.04 between the two observations; this corresponds to an exponential decay time 450 +/- 50 days. Detailed fits to image profiles show that this SN's envelope is heavily limb-darkened, and well-characterized by a surface brightness profile that decreases with angular radius. The apparent size of the envelope also varies significantly with wavelength.

Jakobsen, P.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Line Profile Measurements of the Lunar Exospheric Sodium

We report ongoing results of a program to measure the lunar sodium exospheric line profile from near the lunar limb out to two lunar radii (approx 3500 km). These observations are conducted from the National Solar Observatory McMath-Pierce telescope using a dual-etalon Fabry-Perot spectrometer with a resolving power of 180,600 (1.7 km/s) to measure line widths and velocity shifts of the Na D2 (5889 950 A) emission line in equatorial and polar regions at different lunar phases. The typical field of view (FOV) is 3 arcmin (approx 360 km) with an occasional smaller 1 arcmin FOV used right at the limb edge. The first data were obtained from full Moon to 3 days following full Moon (waning phase) in March 2009 as part of a demonstration run aimed at establishing techniques for a thorough study of temperatures and velocity variations in the lunar sodium exosphere. These data indicate velocity displacements from different locations off the lunar limb range between 150 and 600 m/s from the lunar rest velocity with a precision of +/- 20 to +/- 50 m/s depending on brightness. The measured Doppler line widths for observations within 10.5 arcmin of the east and south lunar limbs for observations between 5 deg and 40 deg lunar phase imply temperatures ranging decreasing from 3250 +/- 260K to 1175 +/- 150K. Additional data is now being collected on a quarterly basis since March 2011 and preliminary results will be reported.

Oliversen, Ronald J.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Non-LTE profiles of the Al I autoionization lines

A non-LTE formulation is given for the transfer of radiation in the autoionizing lines of neutral aluminum at 1932 and 1936 A through both the Bilderberg and Harvard-Smithsonian model atmospheres. Numerical solutions for the common source function of these lines and their theoretical line profiles are calculated and compared with the corresponding LTE profiles. The results show that the non-LTE profiles provide a better match with the observations. They also indicate that the continuous opacity of the standard solar models should be increased in this wavelength region if the center-limb variations of observed and theoretical profiles of these lines are to be in reasonable agreement.

Finn, G. D.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Clouds above the Martin Limb: Viking observations

Whenever Viking Orbiter images included the limb of Mars, they recorded one or more layers of clouds above the limb. The height above the limb and the brightness (reflectivity) of these clouds were determined in a selected group of these images. Normalized individual brightness profiles of three separate traverses across the limb of each image are shown. The most notable finding is that some of these clouds can be very high. Many reach heights of over 60 km, and several are over 70 km above the limb. Statistically, the reflectivity of the clouds increases with phase angle. Reflectivity and height both appear to vary with season, but the selected images spanned only one Martian year, so the role of seasons cannot be isolated. Limb clouds in red-filter images tend to be brighter than violet-filter images, but both season and phase appear to be more dominant factors. Due to the limited sample available, the possible influences of latitude and longitude are less clear. The layering of these clouds ranges from a single layer to five or more layers. Reflectivity gradients range from smooth and gentle to steep and irregular.

Martin, L. J.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Resonance-line transfer with partial redistribution. VII Angle-dependent redistribution

A method is presented for treating radiative transfer in resonance lines, allowing for the full angle and frequency dependence of redistribution in the scattering process, as seen in the laboratory frame. The case of an equivalent-two-level-atom source function is considered; the problem to be treated is then linear in the radiation field. We apply this method to the Ca II lines in the solar atmosphere, using a redistribution function which takes into account a mixture of coherence in the atom's frame, with Doppler redistribution in the laboratory frame (for atoms which have not suffered an elastic collision), and of complete redistribution in the laboratory frame (for atoms that are collisionally perturbed during the emission process). Both the angle-averaged approximation and the full angle-dependent solution were obtained, and were compared to assess, differentially, the effects of angular redistribution upon the computed line profile and its center-to-limb behavior. For the Ca II line in a homogeneous solar chromosphere the angle-dependent effects are found to be negligible, indicating that one may use angle-averaged redistribution functions when studying partial redistribution effects in line profiles.

Milkey, R. W.↗