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1998

SEEK campaign

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Physics

Long Base-Line Measurements Of Short Period Mesospheric Gravity Waves During The Seek Campaign, Michael J. Taylor, S. H. Seo, T. Nakamura, T. Tsuda, H. Fukunishi, Y. Takahashi Jun 1998

Long Base-Line Measurements Of Short Period Mesospheric Gravity Waves During The Seek Campaign, Michael J. Taylor, S. H. Seo, T. Nakamura, T. Tsuda, H. Fukunishi, Y. Takahashi

All Physics Faculty Publications

Simultaneous observations of short‐period (<1 hour) mesospheric gravity waves were made over an extended base‐line (∼660 km) from two sites in Japan (at Shigaraki and Yamagawa) during the SEEK (Sporadic‐E Experiment over Kyushu) campaign, 9–23 August, 1996. Coincident image data obtained on four nights provided a rare opportunity to investigate the horizontal spatial extent and propagation characteristics of the waves in detail. Surprisingly, out of a total of 12 events observed from Shigaraki and 10 from Yamagawa at most only three exhibited similar propagation characteristics at each site. The majority of the wave displays (∼70–75%) had quite dissimilar characteristics suggesting a preponderance for localized wave motions of limited lifetimes and geographical extent. A marked preference for wave progression towards the N‐NE indicates that the gravity waves imaged in the near infrared OH and OI (557.7 nm) nightglow emissions were probably not directly associated with the observed E‐region irregularities.


Possible Evidence Of Gravity Wave Coupling Into The Mid-Latitude F Region Ionosphere During The Seek Campaign, Michael J. Taylor, J. M. Jahn, S. Fukao, A. Saito Jun 1998

Possible Evidence Of Gravity Wave Coupling Into The Mid-Latitude F Region Ionosphere During The Seek Campaign, Michael J. Taylor, J. M. Jahn, S. Fukao, A. Saito

All Physics Faculty Publications

On five of eight observation nights during the 1996 SEEK (Sporadic E Experiment over Kyushu) campaign, Japan, unusual “wave‐like” structures were imaged in the 630 nm thermospheric nightglow emission. Four of these events were observed to travel towards the southwest, providing new evidence in support of recent theories describing the coupling of medium‐scale gravity waves into the mid‐latitude F region ionosphere. Available ionosonde data and the visual characteristics of the wave structures indicate no association with the occurrence of mid‐latitude spread F or F region upwellings. Instead, the data support the novel concept of feedback from the ionosphere into the …