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While knowledge of the energy inputs from the Sun (as it is the primary energy source) is important for understanding the solar-terrestrial system, of equal importance is the manner in which the terrestrial part of the system organizes itself in a quasi-equilibrium state to accommodate and re-emit this energy. The ROSMIC project (2014–2018 inclusive) was the component of SCOSTEP’s Variability of the Sun and Its Terrestrial Impact (VarSITI) program which supported research into the terrestrial component of this system. The four themes supported under ROSMIC are solar influence on climate, coupling by dynamics, trends in the mesosphere lower thermosphere, and trends and solar influence in the thermosphere. Over the course of the VarSITI program, scientific advances were made in all four themes. This included improvements in understanding (1) the transport of photochemically produced species from the thermosphere into the lower atmosphere; (2) the manner in which waves produced in the lower atmosphere propagate upward and influence the winds, dynamical variability, and transport of constituents in the mesosphere, ionosphere, and thermosphere; (3) the character of the long-term trends in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere; and (4) the trends and structural changes taking place in the thermosphere. This paper reviews the progress made in these four areas over the past 5 years and summarizes the anticipated research directions in these areas in the future. It also provides a physical context of the elements which maintain the structure of the terrestrial component of this system. The effects that changes to the atmosphere (such as those currently occurring as a result of anthropogenic influences) as well as plausible variations in solar activity may have on the solar terrestrial system need to be understood to support and guide future human activities on Earth. [Figure not available: see fulltext.][Figure not available: see fulltext.][Figure not available: see fulltext.] © 2021, The Author(s)., WW and AS gratefully acknowledge funding from the ISEE (Institute for Space-Earth Environmental Research), Nagoya University, for support to attend the VarSITI summarizing workshop where the results discussed in this review paper were presented. With funding from the Spanish government through the Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence accreditation SEV-2017-0709.

Imaging observations of OH airglow were conducted at Meiji University, Japan (IN, mE), from May 2018 to December 2019. Mountainous areas, including Mt. Fuji, are located to the west of the imager, and westerly winds are dominant in the lower atmosphere throughout the year. Mountain waves (MWs) are generated on the leeward sides of mountains and occasionally propagate to the upper atmosphere. However, during the observation period (about 1 year and 8 months), only four possible MW events were identified. Based on previous reports, this incidence is considerably lower than expected. There are two possible reasons for the low incidence of MW events: (1) The frequency of MW excitation is small in the lower layers of the atmosphere, and/or (2) MWs do not propagate easily to the upper mesosphere due to background wind conditions. This study verified the likelihood of the former case. Under over-mountain airflow conditions, wavy clouds are often generated on the leeward side. Since over-mountain airflow is essential for the excitation of MWs, the frequency of wavy clouds in the lower atmosphere can be regarded as a measure of the occurrence of MWs. The frequency and spatial distribution of MWs around Japan were investigated by detecting the wavy clouds from color images taken by the Himawari-8 geostationary meteorological satellite (GSM-8) for one year in 2018. The wavy clouds were detected on more than 70 days a year around the Tohoku region, but just 20 days a year around Mt. Fuji. This suggests that few MWs are generated around Mt. Fuji. The differences between these two regions were examined focusing on the relationship between the local topography and dominant horizontal wind fields in the lower atmosphere. Specifically, the findings showed that the angle between the dominant horizontal wind direction and the orientation of the mountain ridge is a good proxy of the occurrence of wavy clouds, i.e., excitation of MWs in mountainous areas. We have also applied this proxy to topography in other areas of the world to investigate areas where MWs would be occurring frequently. Finally, we discuss the likelihood of "MW hotspots" at various spatial scales in the world.

A mountain wave with a significant brightness temperature amplitude and ~500 km horizontal wavelength was observed over the Andes on 24–25 July 2017 in Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS)/Aqua satellite data. In the Modern‐Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA‐2), reanalysis data, the intense eastward wind flowed over the Andes. Visible/Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS)/Suomi‐NPP (National Polar‐orbiting Partnership) did not detect the mountain waves; however, it observed concentric ring‐like waves in the nightglow emissions at ~87 km with ~100 km wavelengths on the same night over and leeward of the Southern Andes. A ray tracing analysis showed that the mountain waves propagated to the east of the Andes, where concentric ring‐like waves appeared above a region of mountain wave breaking. Therefore, the concentric ring‐like waves were likely secondary waves generated by momentum deposition that accompanied mountain wave breaking. These results provide the first direct evidence for secondary gravity waves generated by momentum deposition.

We analyzed OH airglow images observed from an all-sky camera at King Sejong Station, Antarctica for the period of 2012–2016. Using M-transform method, 2D-power spectra of short period waves ...

We developed user-friendly software based on Matsuda et al.'s (2014) 3D-FFT method (Matsuda-transform, M-transform) for airglow imaging data analysis as a function of Interactive Data Language (IDL). Users can customize the range of wave parameters to process when executing the program. The input for this function is a 3-D array of a time series of a 2-D airglow image in geographical coordinates. We applied this new function to mesospheric airglow imaging data with slightly different observation parameters obtained for the period of April–May at three different latitudes: Syowa Station, the Antarctic (69∘ S, 40∘ E); Shigaraki, Japan (35∘ N, 136∘ E); and Tomohon, Indonesia (1∘ N, 122∘ E). The day-to-day variation of the phase velocity spectrum at the Syowa Station is smaller and the propagation direction is mainly westward. In Shigaraki, the day-to-day variation of the horizontal propagation direction is larger than that at the Syowa Station; the variation in Tomohon is even larger. In Tomohon, the variation of the nightly power spectrum magnitude is remarkable, which indicates the intermittency of atmospheric gravity waves (AGWs). The average nightly spectrum obtained from April–May shows that the dominant propagation is westward with a phase speed  m s−1 at the Syowa Station and east-southeastward with a phase speed of up to ∼80 m s−1 in Shigaraki. The day-to-day variation in Tomohon is too strong to discuss average characteristics; however, a phase speed of up to ∼100 m s−1 and faster is observed. The corresponding background wind profiles derived from MERRA-2 indicate that wind filtering plays a significant role in filtering out waves that propagate eastward at the Syowa Station. On the other hand, the background wind is not strong enough to filter out relatively high-speed AGWs in Shigaraki and Tomohon and the dominant propagation direction is likely related to the distribution and characteristics of the source region, at least in April and May.

We have obtained horizontal phase velocity distributions of the gravity waves around 90 km from four Antarctic airglow imagers, which belong to an international airglow imager/instrument network known as ANGWIN (Antarctic Gravity Wave Instrument Network). Results from the airglow imagers at Syowa (69°S, 40°E), Halley (76°S, 27°W), Davis (69°S, 78°E), and McMurdo (78°S, 167°E) were compared, using a new statistical analysis method based on 3-D Fourier transform (Matsuda et al., 2014) for the observation period between 7 April and 21 May 2013. Significant day-to-day and site-to-site differences were found. The averaged phase velocity spectrum during the observation period showed preferential westward direction at Syowa, McMurdo, and Halley, but no preferential direction at Davis. Gravity wave energy estimated by I'/I was ~5 times larger at Davis and Syowa than at McMurdo and Halley. We also compared the phase velocity spectrum at Syowa and Davis with the background wind field and found that the directionality only over Syowa could be explained by critical level filtering of the waves. This suggests that the eastward propagating gravity waves over Davis could have been generated above the polar night jet. Comparison of nighttime variations of the phase velocity spectra with background wind measurements suggested that the effect of critical level filtering could not explain the temporal variation of gravity wave directionality well, and other reasons such as variation of wave sources should be taken into account. Directionality was determined to be dependent on the gravity wave periods. ©2017. The Authors.

The potential energy of gravity waves (GWs) per unit mass (Ep), at altitudes of 15–70 km, has been examined from temperature profiles obtained by a Rayleigh/Raman (RR) lidar at Syowa Station (69°S, 40°E) from May 2011 to October 2013, with the exception of the summer months. The GWs with ground-based wave periods longer than 2 h and vertical wavelengths between 1.8 and 16 km were extracted from the temperature profiles. Ep was larger in winter than in spring and fall, although in 2012, at altitudes below 30 km, Ep was larger in spring than in winter and fall. Ep increased with a mean scale height of 11.3 km. Ep profiles showed a local maximum at an altitude of 20 km and a minimum at 25 km in almost every month, which has not been reported by previous studies observed by radiosondes. The values of Ep in October of 2012 were smaller at 35–60 km and larger at 20–35 km than those in October of 2011 and 2013. This difference in the Ep profile is most probably caused by different seasonal variations of zonal winds. The larger and smaller Ep values seem to be observed both below and above the altitude at which the zonal wind speed reached 0 m s-1. This result suggests that wind filtering of gravity waves with small phase speeds is significantly important in early spring.

Characteristics of the diurnal tide in the Antarctic mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) are investigated using 10 years of medium frequency (MF) radar data from Syowa Station (69° S, 39.6° E). Seasonal variations and height dependence of the diurnal amplitude and phase of zonal and meridional winds are mostly consistent with previous studies using the other Antarctic station data. The meridional momentum flux due to the diurnal tide shows a seasonal variation clearly different between above and below 90 km, which has never been reported in the literature. Finally, a cause of some discrepancy in the characteristics of the diurnal tide between the observation and simulation (i.e., GSWM-02) is discussed. It implies that the realistic representation of gravity waves in the simulation is crucial for realistic modeling of the diurnal tide.

A Rayleigh–Raman lidar system was installed in January 2011 at Syowa Station, Antarctica (69.0° S, 39.6° E). Polar mesospheric clouds (PMCs) were detected by lidar at around 22:30 UTC (LT −3 h) on 4 February 2011, which was the first day of observation. This was the first detection of PMCs over Syowa Station by lidar. On the same day, a Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) HF radar with oblique-incidence beams detected polar mesospheric summer echoes (PMSE) between 21:30 and 23:00 UTC. This event is regarded as the last PMC activity around Syowa Station during the austral summer season (2010–2011), since no other PMC signals were detected by lidar in February 2011. This is consistent with results of PMC and mesopause temperature observations by satellite-born instruments of AIM (Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere)/CIPS (Cloud Imaging and Particle Size) and AURA/MLS (Microwave Limb Sounder) and horizontal wind measurements taken by a separate MF radar. Doppler velocity of PMSE observed by the HF radar showed motion toward Syowa Station (westward). This westward motion is consistent with the wind velocities obtained by the MF radar. However, the PMSE region showed horizontal motion from a north-to-south direction during the PMC event. This event indicates that the apparent horizontal motion of the PMSE region can deviate from neutral wind directions and observed Doppler velocities.

By analyzing data from satellite measurements, a reanalysis, and a chemistry-climate model, we found clear zonally uniform tidal signals in the tropical stratosphere, particularly during the Northern Hemisphere summer. Antisymmetric components with respect to the equator are dominant and are characterized by a vertical wavelength of ~15 km and a diurnal frequency. The temperature and vertical wind diurnal amplitudes in the stratosphere are 0.2–1 K and 1–7 mm s–1, respectively. The latter is generally larger than the climatological ascent motion in the stratosphere. The observed latitudinal and vertical structures can be explained by the second, propagating, antisymmetric Hough mode. These tidal oscillations should be carefully considered in analyses of zonal mean fields at a particular universal time.

Multiple tropopauses (MTs) defined by the World Meteorological Organization are frequently detected from autumn to spring at Syowa Station (69.0°S, 39.6°E). The dynamical mechanism of MT events was examined by observations of the first mesosphere–stratosphere–troposphere (MST) radar in the Antarctic, the Program of the Antarctic Syowa MST/Incoherent Scatter (IS) Radar (PANSY), and of radiosondes on 8–11 April 2013. The MT structure above the first tropopause is composed of strong temperature fluctuations. By a detailed analysis of observed three-dimensional wind and temperature fluctuation components, it is shown that the phase and amplitude relations between these components are consistent with the theoretical characteristics of linear inertia–gravity waves (IGWs). Numerical simulations were performed by using a nonhydrostatic model. The simulated MT structures and IGW parameters agree well with the observation. In the analysis using the numerical simulation data, it is seen that IGWs were generated around 65°S, 15°E and around 70°S, 15°E, propagated eastward, and reached the region above Syowa Station when the MT event was observed. These IGWs were likely radiated spontaneously from the upper-tropospheric flow around 65°S, 15°E and were forced by strong southerly surface winds over steep topography (70°S, 15°E). The MT occurrence is attributable to strong IGWs and the low mean static stability in the polar winter lower stratosphere. It is also shown that nonorographic gravity waves associated with the tropopause folding event contribute to 40% of the momentum fluxes, as shown by a gravity wave–resolving general circulation model in the lower stratosphere around 65°S. This result indicates that they are one of the key components for solving the cold-bias problem found in most climate models.

Accepted: 2016-11-10, 資料番号: SA1160279000

The first observations made by a complete PANSY radar system (Program of the Antarctic Syowa MST/IS Radar) installed at Syowa Station (39.6 °E, 69.0 °S) were successfully performed from March 16–24, 2015. Over this period, quasi-half-day period (12 h) disturbances in the lower mesosphere at heights of 70 km to 80 km were observed. Estimated vertical wavelengths, wave periods and vertical phase velocities of the disturbances were approximately 13.7 km, 12.3 h and −0.3 m s−1, respectively. Under the working hypothesis that such disturbances are attributable to inertia-gravity waves, wave parameters are estimated using a hodograph analysis. The estimated horizontal wavelengths are longer than 1100 km, and the wavenumber vectors tend to point northeastward or southwestward. Using the non-hydrostatic numerical model with a model top of 87 km, quasi 12 h disturbances in the mesosphere were successfully simulated. We show that quasi 12 h disturbances are due to wave-like disturbances with horizontal wavelengths longer than 1400 km and are not due to semi-diurnal migrating tides. Wave parameters, such as horizontal wavelengths, vertical wavelengths and wave periods, simulated by the model agree well with those estimated by the PANSY radar observations under the above-mentioned assumption. The parameters of the simulated waves are consistent with the dispersion relationship of the inertia-gravity wave. These results indicate that the quasi 12 h disturbances observed by the PANSY radar are attributable to large-scale inertia-gravity waves. By examining a residual of the nonlinear balance equation, it is inferred that the inertia-gravity waves are likely generated by the spontaneous radiation mechanism of two different jet streams. One is the mid-latitude tropospheric jet around the tropopause while the other is the polar night jet. Large vertical fluxes of zonal and meridional momentum associated with large-scale inertia-gravity waves are distributed across a slanted region from the mid-latitude lower stratosphere to the polar mesosphere in the meridional cross-section. Moreover, the vertical flux of the zonal momentum has a strong negative peak in the mesosphere, suggesting that some large-scale inertia-gravity waves originate in the upper stratosphere.

A high-vertical-resolution general circulation model (GCM) output has been analyzed to clarify transport and mixing processes in the extratropical tropopause region. The high-resolution GCM, with a vertical resolution of about 300 m above the extratropical upper troposphere, allows simulation of fine atmospheric structures near the tropopause, such as the extratropical tropopause transition layer (ExTL) and the tropopause inversion layer (TIL). The high-resolution GCM realistically simulates fine thermal and dynamic structures in the extratropical tropopause region. The thickness and maximum stability of the simulated TIL are consistent with observations. The high-resolution output was analyzed using a zonal mean potential vorticity (PV) equation to identify dominant transport processes in the extratropical tropopause region. In the Northern Hemisphere extratropics during winter, mean downward advection sharpens the PV gradient between the tropopause and 20 K below it, whereas latitudinal variation in isentropic mixing sharpens the vertical PV gradient between the tropopause and 10 K above it. During summer, vertical mixing substantially sharpens the vertical PV gradient at 10–25 K above the tropopause. These sharpening effects may be strongly related to the formation mechanisms of strong concentration gradients of chemical tracers around the ExTL. Mechanisms of evolution of the TIL are also discussed by analyzing a thermodynamic equation. Downward heat advection and radiation processes primarily determine the seasonality of the TIL. The analysis results suggest that the locations of the TIL and the ExTL can be similar because of common dynamic processes and interactions between constituent distributions and thermal structure.

The relative roles of atmospheric motions on various scales, from mesoscale to planetary scale, in transport and mixing in the extratropical tropopause region are investigated using a high-vertical-resolution general circulation model (GCM). The GCM with a vertical resolution of about 300 m explicitly represents the propagation and breaking of gravity waves and the induced transport and mixing. A downward control calculation shows that the Eliassen–Palm (E-P) flux of the gravity waves diverges and induces a mean equatorward flow in the extratropical tropopause region, which differs from the mean poleward flow induced by the convergence of large-scale E-P fluxes. The diffusion coefficients estimated from the eddy potential vorticity flux in tropopause-based coordinates reveal that isentropic motions diffuse air between 20 K below and 10 K above the tropopause from late autumn to early spring, while vertical mixing is strongly suppressed at around 10–15 K above the tropopause throughout the year. The isentropic mixing is mainly caused by planetary- and synoptic-scale motions, while small-scale motions with a horizontal scale of less than a few thousand kilometers largely affect the three-dimensional mixing just above the tropopause. Analysis of the gravity wave energy and atmospheric instability implies that the small-scale dynamics associated with the dissipation and saturation of gravity waves is a significant cause of the three-dimensional mixing just above the tropopause. A rapid increase in the static stability in the tropopause inversion layer is considered to play an important role in controlling the gravity wave activity around the tropopause.

The horizontal structure of processes causing increases in ozone in the Antarctic polar vortex was examined using data measured in 2003 from an ozonesonde observation campaign at Syowa Station (39.6°E, 69.0°S) and from the Improved Limb Atmospheric Spectrometer II (ILAS-II) onboard the Advanced Earth Observing Satellite II. The ILAS-II data are daily and distributed uniformly at 14 points in the zonal direction, mostly at polar latitudes. The Antarctic ozone hole that developed in 2003 was one of the largest recorded. The period of focus in this study is 26 September through 24 October, when a strong polar vortex was situated in the stratosphere. An ozone mixing ratio contour (1.0 ppmv) moved downward near a height of 20 km during the period of focus. This increase in ozone is likely to result from downward transport of ozone-rich air originating from lower latitudes by Brewer–Dobson circulation. First, the descent rate of the mixing ratio contour was estimated by taking the geometric height as the vertical coordinate for the deep vortex interior around 20 km. A significant longitudinal dependence was observed. An analysis using ECMWF operational data shows that this dependence can be approximately explained by longitudinally dependent vertical movements of the isentropes caused by a zonal wavenumber-1 quasi-stationary planetary wave with amplitude and phases varying on a seasonal time scale. Next, the descent rate was calculated around 500 K (around 20 km) by taking the potential temperature (isentrope) as the vertical coordinate. The longitudinal dependence was still present using this coordinate, meaning that the ozone mixing ratio and its increase are not constant on the isentropic layer even in the interior of the polar vortex. A backward trajectory analysis showed that air parcels with large ozone mixing ratios were mostly transported from the polar vortex boundary region. This result suggests that lateral transport/mixing is important even before the breakup of the polar vortex. Results from a tracer–tracer correlation analysis of O3 and long-lived constituent N2O were also consistent with this inference. The contribution of lateral mixing to the increase in ozone was estimated at about 17% ± 4% that of the Brewer–Dobson circulation around 20 km, using the calculated descent rates. The results of this study also imply that Lagrangian downward motions in the vortex interior are not correctly estimated without accounting for lateral mixing, even if the polar vortex is dynamically stable.

The spatial structure and phase velocity of tropopause disturbances localized around the subpolar jet in the Southern Hemisphere are investigated using 6-hourly European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts reanalysis data covering 15 yr (1979–93). The phase velocity and phase structure of the tropopause disturbances are in good agreement with those of an edge wave vertically trapped at the tropopause. However, the vertical distribution of the ratio of potential to kinetic energy exhibits maxima above and below the tropopause and a minimum around the tropopause, in contradiction to edge wave theory for which the ratio is unity throughout the troposphere and stratosphere. This difference in vertical structure between the observed tropopause disturbances and edge wave theory is attributed to the effects of a finite-depth tropopause together with the next-order corrections in Rossby number to quasigeostrophic dynamics.

An intensive radiosonde observation with time intervals of 3 h was performed in June 2002 at Syowa Station (39.6°E, 69°S) in the Antarctic. A wavelike disturbance with a wave period of 12-15 h, having a nearly barotropic structure was observed above a height of 22 km in the time period of 27-28 June 2002. A result of the hodograph analysis suggests that the short-period disturbance is not due to an inertiagravity wave. A similar short-period disturbance is observed in the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) operational analysis data. Results of detailed analysis using the ECMWF data show that the short-period disturbance has a horizontal wavelength of about 2000 km, and propagates along a potential vorticity minimum region with a horizontal phase velocity of about 40 m s−1. This phase velocity is equal to the background horizontal wind velocity at the potential vorticity minimum. A necessary condition for the barotropic instability is locally satisfied at the potential vorticity minimum. However, it is rather appropriate that the short-period disturbance is interpreted as a neutral wave than as an unstable wave in the barotropically unstable background flow. This result implies any unknown mechanism of the suppression of barotropic instability in the locally unstable background flow associated with a disturbed polar vortex.

The mechanism to explain the variations of tropopause and tropopause inversion layer (TIL) in the Arctic region during a sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) in 2009 was studied with the Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications reanalysis data and GPS/Constellation Observing system for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate (COSMIC) temperature data. During the prominent SSW in 2009, the cyclonic system changed to the anticyclonic system due to the planetary wave with wave number 2 (wave2). The GPS/COSMIC temperature data showed that during the SSW in 2009, the tropopause height in the Arctic decreased accompanied with the tropopause temperature increase and the TIL enhancement. The variations of the tropopause and TIL were larger in higher latitudes. A static stability analysis showed that the variations of the tropopause and TIL were associated with the variations of the residual circulation and the static stability due to the SSW. Larger static stability appeared in the upper stratosphere and moved downward to the narrow region just above the tropopause. The descent of strong downward flow was faster in higher latitudes. The static stability tendency analysis showed that the strong downward residual flow induced the static stability change in the stratosphere and around the tropopause. The strong downwelling in the stratosphere was mainly induced by wave2, which led to the tropopause height and temperature changes due to the adiabatic heating. Around the tropopause, a pair of downwelling above the tropopause and upwelling below the tropopause due to wave2 contributed to the enhancement of static stability in the TIL immediately after the SSW.

[1] Recovery processes after a major stratospheric sudden warming (SSW) with the formation of an elevated stratopause and a strong polar-night jet are investigated using a gravity-wave-resolving GCM. The major SSW that occurred in the GCM bears a strong resemblance to observations in January 2006 and January 2009. The recovery phase of the SSW in the GCM is divided into two stages. In the first stage during about five days just after the SSW, a large positive Eliassen-Palm (E-P) flux divergence associated with the growth of planetary waves contributes to the quick recovery of eastward wind above 2 hPa (about 42 km), which is likely due to baroclinic and/or barotropic instabilities. In the second stage over the next three weeks, a prolonged westward wind in the lower stratosphere blocked upward propagation of gravity waves with westward intrinsic phase velocities. It reduces the deceleration of eastward wind in the upper mesosphere and raises the breaking height of gravity waves. Since the height of westward gravity wave forcing also rises, the polar stratopause created by the gravity-wave-driven meridional circulation is formed at an elevated height (about 75 km) compared to that before the SSW (55–65 km). In addition, the weaker westward gravity-wave forcing in the upper mesosphere drives weaker downwelling around 1 hPa and forms a cold layer. Consequently, the strong polar-night jet forms at a higher altitude than before the SSW as a result of adjustment toward the thermal wind balance. This indicates that these two stages provide eastward acceleration in different ways.

[1] Using hourly data from a three-year simulation based on a gravity-wave resolving general circulation model, we have first inferred a global view of gravity wave sources and propagation affecting significantly the momentum balance in the mesosphere. The meridional cross section of momentum fluxes suggests that there are a few dominant propagation paths originating from the subtropics in summer and the middle to high latitudes in winter. These gravity waves are focused into the mesospheric jets in their respective seasons, acting effectively to decelerate the jets. The difference in the source latitudes likely contributes to the hemispheric asymmetries of the jets. The horizontal distribution of the momentum fluxes indicates that the dominant sources are steep mountains and tropospheric westerly jets in winter and vigorous monsoon convection in summer. The monsoon regions are the most important window to the middle atmosphere in summer because of the easterlies associated with the monsoon circulation.

[1] The eastward moving 4-day wave in the Antarctic winter mesosphere is investigated using a high-resolution middle atmosphere general circulation model that directly simulates the spontaneous generation, propagation, and dissipation of gravity waves. The results are also compared with the simulated seasonal march of the meridional structures of the westerly jet streams in the Southern Hemisphere upper stratosphere and mesosphere in order to investigate baroclinic/barotropic instability as a possible excitation mechanism for the 4-day wave. The model successfully reproduces the dynamically unstable double-jet structure of the mesospheric westerly winds. The simulated 4-day wave develops in association with the baroclinic and barotropic instability of the mesospheric mean flows and has similar characteristics to those observed at 50–60°S near the stratopause. The 4-day wave has strong equatorward heat flux associated with strong baroclinicity in the Antarctic winter mesosphere, mainly attributable to poleward overturning circulation driven by gravity wave forcing. Eastward forcing due to the 4-day wave occurs within the double-jet structure and offsets part of the westward forcing due to gravity waves. Such an effect partially acts to stabilize the unstable mean flow structure in the Antarctic winter mesosphere.

[1] A wintertime temperature maximum can be observed at the subtropical stratopause but does not appear in the radiative equilibrium temperature distribution. This structure was well simulated using a high-resolution general circulation model and examined in detail. The stratopause temperature is latitudinally maximized in the winter subtropics because of a strong downwelling of the meridional circulation from summer tropics to winter subtropics passing above the stratopause. Its strong meridional flow consists of two parts: a strong poleward flow in the winter subtropics with nearly vertically aligned contours of absolute angular momentum (M) and a strong cross-equatorial flow toward winter hemisphere above the tropical stratopause with nearly horizontally aligned M contours. The strong poleward flow in the winter subtropics is driven by a large Eliassen-Palm (E-P) flux convergence in a small absolute vorticity region. The large E-P flux convergence is due to extratropical planetary waves and asymmetric inertial instability. On the other hand, the strong cross-equatorial flow is induced along the M contour to satisfy mass continuity with the strong poleward flow in the winter subtropics and exists in the easterly phase of S-SAO with a small latitudinal gradient of M. The easterly of S-SAO during its mature phase acts as a corridor for cross-equatorial meridional circulation, while cross-equatorial meridional circulation contributes to driving the easterly of S-SAO in its development phase.

[1] A high-resolution middle atmosphere general circulation model (GCM) developed for studying small-scale atmospheric processes is presented, and the general features of the model are discussed. The GCM has T213 spectral horizontal resolution and 256 vertical levels extending from the surface to a height of 85 km with a uniform vertical spacing of 300 m. Gravity waves (GWs) are spontaneously generated by convection, topography, instability, and adjustment processes in the model, and the GCM reproduces realistic general circulation in the extratropical stratosphere and mesosphere. The oscillations similar to the stratopause semiannual oscillation and the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) in the equatorial lower stratosphere are also spontaneously generated in the GCM, although the period of the QBO-like oscillation is short (15 months). The relative roles of planetary waves, large-scale GWs, and small-scale GWs in maintenance of the meridional structures of the zonal wind jets in the middle atmosphere are evaluated by calculating Eliassen-Palm diagnostics separately for each of these three groups of waves. Small-scale GWs are found to cause deceleration of the wintertime polar night jet and the summertime easterly jet in the mesosphere, while extratropical planetary waves primarily cause deceleration of the polar night jet below a height of approximately 60 km. The meridional distribution and propagation of small-scale GWs are shown to affect the shape of the upper part of mesospheric jets. The phase structures of orographic GWs over the South Andes and GWs emitted from the tropospheric jet stream are discussed as examples of realistic GWs reproduced by the T213L256 GCM.

[1] In order to examine gravity wave characteristics over the ocean, we conducted a radiosonde observation campaign to scan the stratosphere meridionally over the middle Pacific with Hakuho-maru research vessel operated by the Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo. Seventy vertical profiles of temperature, winds, and humidity were successfully obtained over a wide latitude range of 28°N to 48°S with an interval of 1 degree. Gravity wave energy and vertical wavenumber spectra were examined as a function of latitude. Gravity wave energy is maximized in the tropical region where the convection is active and in the middle latitude region where the subtropical westerly jet is situated. The wave energy in the tropical region is greater than the climatology based on operational radiosonde observation over land regions. The gravity wave amplitude does not necessarily increase with altitude, in contradiction to simple vertical propagation. The latitudinal distribution of wave energy rather suggests that gravity waves propagate meridionally toward higher latitudes. An interesting feature is that a wave packet having large horizontal wind and temperature amplitudes is observed continuously over 7 days in the latitudinal region extending 26 degrees. Results of hodograph analysis indicate that the wave packet is due to an inertia-gravity wave with horizontal and vertical wavelengths of about 1800 km and 4–5km, respectively. This inertia-gravity wave is likely generated in association with vigorous convection in the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the Northern Hemisphere and propagated southward interhemispherically. The results in this study show that there are strong nonstationary gravity wave sources over the ocean. The importance of meridionally propagating gravity waves is discussed.

[1] An intensive observation with ozonesondes, radiosondes, and the Middle and Upper atmosphere (MU) radar was conducted at Shigaraki (34.9°N, 136.1°E), Japan, from 16 through 24 April 1998 to investigate the formation mechanism of ozone laminae in the midlatitude lower stratosphere. In these observations the temporal variation of an ozone lamina at Shigaraki was continuously observed through a short time interval of 8 hours. During the observation period an ozone lamina with a thickness of 2–3 km appeared and ascended with a speed of ∼1 km day−1 in the height region of 18–21 km. It is deduced that inertia gravity waves existing in this height region did not contribute to formation of the ozone lamina, because their amplitudes were too small and their vertical phase propagation was in the opposite direction. The reverse domain filling method was used to reconstruct the “high-resolution” modified potential vorticity field using backward trajectory calculations. The results indicate that this ozone lamina was caused by differential advection due to the vertical shear associated with the subtropical westerly jet and embedded stationary Rossby wave therein. This means that large-scale motions concurrent with vertical wind shear can produce much smaller-scale structures in material fields than those of the large-scale motions themselves.

A grating spectrometer for hydroxyl (OH) airglow installed at Syowa Station (69°S, 39.6°E) by the 49th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE49) has been in operation since late February, 2008. A dataset of 153 nights was acquired at this location in the austral winter season of 2008. This dataset shows variations in the rotational temperature over a range of temporal scales. The rotational temperature around the polar mesopause region is high in winter and decreases toward summer, which is a pattern similar to that observed at Davis Station, located at almost the same latitude as Syowa Station. A large temperature variation with a period of several days was observed in early May, 2008. Based on a comparison with a simultaneous dataset obtained by the SABER instrument onboard the TIMED satellite, it is inferred that this rotational temperature variation was due to the modulation of vertical motions around the mesopause.

[1] A global distribution and seasonal variability of short-period (