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Results for “SEASONAL VARIATIONS”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1991

Seasonal variations in the subauroral electron temperature enhancement

A statistical study of the seasonal variations of the subauroral electron temperature enhancement was undertaken using data from the Langmuir probe experiment on the DE 2 satellite throughout most of the mission (1981-1982). In the winter hemisphere the nighttime background electron temperature is the highest and the magnitude of the peak Te responds most weakly to the geomagnetic activity. This behavior can be explained by seasonal trends in the nighttime downward heat flux due to conjugate photoelectrons. Moreover, model results indicate that a factor of about three increase in heat inflow during equinox relative to solstice is required to raise the electron temperature to a given level. This is a consequence of the higher electron densities at the Te peak near equinox. The Te peak occurs on field lines which thread the outer plasmasphere in the vicinity if the plasmapause and thus can be used as a tracer of the plasmapause position.

Fok, M.-C.↗
NASA NTRS1981

The seasonal variations of ozone and temperature in the middle and the upper stratosphere

The seasonal variations in ozone and temperature inferred from the Nimbus-4 BUV (Backscatter Ultraviolet Spectrometer) and the SCR (Selective Chopper Radiometer) experiments are compared with predictions based on a simplified radiative photochemical model. It is shown that the observations, in agreement with the model calculations, show a systematic phase shift from a summer maximum at 10 mb to a winter maximum at 1 mb with equinoctial maxima at intermediate heights. In contrast, the temperature between these pressure levels shows no appreciable phase shift and the summer maximum prevails at all heights. The observed phase differences in ozone and temperature are shown to be a manifestation of the radiative feedback on the photochemistry of the upper stratosphere.

Chandra, S.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Latitudinal (seasonal) variations in the thermospheric midnight temperature maximum - A tidal analysis

The temperature variations of the neutral gas in the thermosphere are considered as a function of local time and season, taking into account the latitude range from -17.5 deg to +17.5 deg and the altitude range from about 250 km to about 400 km. The temperature measurements were conducted in situ with the Neutral Atmospheric Temperature Experiment (NATE) on the Atmospheric Explorer E (AE-E) spacecraft during the time between December 1976 and January 1979. The altitude of the circular orbit of the spacecraft was gradually increased during this period from 250 to 400 km. A significant result of the reported analysis is the latitudinal (seasonal) variation observed in the semidiurnal and terdiurnal tides during solstice. It is found that this variation is responsible for the seasonal behavior of the midnight temperature maximum.

Herrero, F. A.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Seasonal variations in the stable carbon isotopic signature of biogenic methane in a coastal sediment

Systematic seasonal variations in the stable carbon isotopic signature of methane gas occur in the anoxic sediments of Cape Lookout Bight, a lagoonal basin on North Carolina's Outer Banks. Values for the carbon isotope ratio of methane range from -57.3 per mil during summer to -68.5 per mil during winter in gas bubbles with an average methane content of 95 percent. The variations are hypothesized to result from changes in the pathways of microbial methane production and cycling of key substrates including acetate and hydrogen. The use of stable isotopic signatures to investigate the global methane cycle through mass balance calculations, involving various sediment and soil biogenic sources, appears to require seasonally averaged data from individual sites.

Martens, C. S.↗
NASA NTRS1992

Seasonal variation of surface radiation budget derived from International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project C1 data

Surface radiation budget data are presented for the midseasonal months of July and October of 1983 and January and April of 1984. These data allow the examination of geographical and seasonal variations of the entire surface radiation budget from pole to pole. The latest flux estimation techniques have been used along with data from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project and the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment. Regional, zonal, and hemispheric distributions of the downward and net components of both shortwave and longwave fluxes and of the net total surface fluxes are determined. Seasonal flux variation per region, expressed as flux range, is illustrated for these components also. The estimated fluxes appear to be accurate to about 16 W/sq m on a global average, based on sensitivity analyses and comparisons with ground data. An analysis of flux errors showed that most of the error was attributable to errors in input data.

Darnell, Wayne L.↗
NASA NTRS1984

Seasonal Variations in Triton's Atmospheric Mass and Composition

Condensed phases of gases which make up the bulk of Triton's atmosphere are likely to exist on Triton's surface in the form of solid or liquid polar caps which extend as far as 55 deg from the poles. The mass of Triton's atmosphere is governed by the energy balance between the sunlight these caps absorb and the heat they radiate to space. The polar cap temperatures should be approximately equal and uniform over their surfaces. Because of the rapid precession of Triton's orbit about Neptune's pole, the insolation and, therefore, the temperature of the polar caps must vary in a complex fashion. The variations in the temperature of the polar caps will also cause seasonal variations in the mixing ratio of the volatile atmospheric gases owing to the different behaviors of their saturation vapor pressures with temperature. Triton's visible hemisphere is approaching a major southern summer with solstices. If the polar caps are not too thin a dramatic increase in the CH4 column abundance would occur.

Trafton, L. M.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Seasonal variation and magnitude of the solar sector structure-atmospheric vorticity effect

Evidence is reported for a seasonal variation in the effect of solar sector structure on terrestrial atmospheric vorticity. Graphs showing average response of the 50,000-Pa vorticity area index to solar magnetic sector structure during the time interval extending from 6 days before to 6 days after the time at which a sector boundary is swept past the earth indicate that a 10% drop in the average value occurs at the time of passage, but this effect is observed only during the winter months.

Wilcox, J. M.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Global seasonal variations of the near-surface relative humidity levels on present-day Mars

We investigate the global seasonal variations of near-surface relative humidity and relevant attributes, like temperature and water vapor volume mixing ratio on Mars using calculations from modelled and measurement data. We focus on 2 AM local time snapshots to eliminate daily effects related to differences in insolation, and to be able to compare calculations based on modelling data from the Laboratoire de Météorologie Dynamique Mars General Circulation Model with the observations of Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer. We study the seasonal effects by examining four specific dates in the Martian year, the northern spring equinox, summer solstice, autumn equinox, and winter solstice. We identify three specific zones, where the near-surface relative humidity levels are systematically higher than in their vicinity regardless of season. We find that these areas coincide with low thermal inertia features, which control surface temperatures on the planet, and are most likely covered with unconsolidated fine dust with grain sizes smaller than ∼ 40 μm. By comparing the data of relative humidity, temperature and water vapor volume mixing ratio at three different heights (near-surface, ∼ 4m and ∼ 23m above the surface), we demonstrate that the thermal inertia could play an important role in determining near-surface humidity levels. We also notice that during the night the water vapor levels drop at ∼ 4m above the surface. This, together with the temperature and thermal inertia values, shows that water vapor likely condenses in the near-surface atmosphere and on the ground during the night at the three aforementioned regions. This condensation may be in the form of brines, wettening of the fine grains by adsorption or deliquescence. This study specifies areas of interest on the surface of present day Mars for the proposed condensation, which may be examined by in-situ measurements in the future.

Bernadett Pál↗
NASA NTRS1989

Effect on atmospheric CO2 from seasonal variations in the high latitude ocean

Data from the North Pacific gyre, Bering Sea, and North Atlantic show large seasonal fluctuations in the pCO2 of surface waters. The seasonal variation in these latitudes apparently has a generic pattern: higher surface water pCO2 in winter and lower in summer. Satellite data will eventually help decipher the relative effects of temperature and biological production in the seasonal carbon cycle, but as yet little work has been done on what possible role the seasonality of pCO2 in the high latitudes might have on the average value of atmospheric pCO2. A model is developed that shows the average value for atmospheric pCO2 depends upon the ratio of the rates at which the ocean/atmosphere system moves toward equilibrium values during the summer and winter conditions of the high latitude ocean.

Volk, Tyler↗
DOE OSTI2022

Seasonal Variation of Dust Aerosol Vertical Distribution in Arctic Based on Polarized Micropulse Lidar Measurement

This study investigates the seasonal variation of dust aerosol vertical distribution using polarized Micropulse lidar (MPL) measurements at the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) North Slope of Alaska (NSA) observatory from January 2013 to September 2017. For the first time, multi-year aerosol backscatter coefficients are retrieved at the ARM NSA site from MPL measurements and are consistent with co-located high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL) measurements. The high-quality aerosol backscatter coefficient retrievals are used to derive the particle depolarization ratio (PDR) at the wavelength of 532 nm, which is used to identify the presence of dust aerosols. The annual cycles of the vertical distributions of dust backscatter coefficient and PDR and dust aerosol optical depth (DAOD) show that aerosol loading has a maximum in late winter and early spring but a minimum in late summer and early autumn. Vertically, dust aerosol occurs in the entire troposphere in spring and winter and in the low and middle troposphere in summer and autumn. Because dust aerosols are effective ice nuclei, the seasonality of dust aerosol vertical distribution has important implications for the Arctic climate through aerosol–cloud–radiation interactions, primarily through impacting mixed-phase cloud processes.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗
NASA NTRS1995

Seasonal Variations of the Earth's Gravitational Field: An Analysis of Atmospheric Pressure, Ocean Tidal, and Surface Water Excitation

Seasonal variations in the Earth's gravitational field are investigated through the analysis of LAGEOS I satellite laser ranging measurements spanning 1984 to 1992. Global surface pressure data are analyzed; a self-consistent equilibrium ocean tide model is used to compute the effect of the gravitational field on tides. Laser ranging measurements are used to model gravitational field effects.

Laser↗