Noctilucent cloud overview
Document ID: 325
1 The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Electrical Engineering, University Park, PA, U.S.A.
Presented: 18th ESA Symposium on 'European Rocket and Balloon Programmes and Related Research'
Visby, Sweden, June 3-7, 2007
Abstract
The goal of this paper is to smnmarize primary features of the properties and processes of the summer mesopause. The historical data on the properties of noctilucent clouds (NLCs) has relied primarily upon rocket probes, however in recent years remote sensing activities with lidars and radars have added significantly to our understanding of the spatial and temporal variations, and the relationships between NLC and PMSE displays. Models and simulations have provided insight for understanding many of the processes contributing to the formation of the NLCs. However, the details of the processes of particle fom1ation, and the possible connections to climate, dynamics, and transpoi:t in the middle atmosphere are very triguing to the scientific community. Key measurements of the properties and processes reported from prior investigations are summarized as a reference for developing our current understanding of the summer polar mesopause region.
| Citation: | "Noctilucent cloud overview", Philbrick, C. R., Proceedings, 18th ESA Symposium on 'European Rocket and Balloon Programmes and Related Research', European Space Agency (ESA), November 2007, pp. 127 - 132 |