Synthetic thermosphere winds based on CHAMP neutral and plasma density measurements

Meridional winds in the thermosphere are key to understanding latitudinal coupling and thermosphere-ionosphere coupling, and yet global measurements of this wind component are scarce. In this work, neutral and electron densities measured by the Challenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP) satellite at solar low and geomagnetically quiet...

Wave coupling between the lower and middle thermosphere as viewed from TIMED and GOCE

Vertical coupling between the lower and middle thermosphere due to the eastward propagating diurnal tide with zonal wave number 3 (DE3) and the 3.5?day ultra-fast Kelvin Wave (UFKW) is investigated using Thermosphere, Ionosphere, Mesosphere, Energetics and Dynamics-Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (TIMED-SABER)...

Global ionospheric and thermospheric response to the 5 April 2010 geomagnetic storm: An integrated data-model investigation

We present a case study of the 5 April 2010 geomagnetic storm using observations and numerical simulations. The event was driven by a fast-moving coronal mass ejection and despite being a moderate storm with a minimum Dst near ?50 nT, the event exhibited elevated thermospheric density and surges of traveling atmospheric disturbances (TADs) more...

Lunar tide contribution to thermosphere weather

As the utilization of low-Earth orbit increases, so does the need for improved ephemeris predictions and thus more accurate density models. In this paper we quantify the density variability of the thermosphere attributable to the lunar gravitational tide, a potentially predictable component of variability not included in any operational density...

Improved short-term variability in the thermosphere-ionosphere-mesosphere-electrodynamics general circulation model

We report on a new source of tidal variability in the National Center for Atmospheric Research thermosphere-ionosphere-mesosphere-electrodynamics general circulation model (TIME-GCM). Lower boundary forcing of the TIME-GCM for a simulation of November–December 2009 based on 3-hourly Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Application ...

Atmospheric gravity waves due to the Tohoku-Oki tsunami observed in the thermosphere by GOCE

Oceanic tsunami waves couple with atmospheric gravity waves, as previously observed through ionospheric and airglow perturbations. Aerodynamic velocities and density variations are computed from Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) accelerometer and thruster data during Tohoku-Oki tsunami propagation. High-frequency...

GOCE: The first seismometer in orbit around the Earth

The first in situ sounding of a post-seismic infrasound wavefront is presented, using data from the GOCE mission. The atmospheric infrasounds following the great Tohoku earthquake (on 11 March 2011) induce variations of air density and vertical acceleration of the GOCE platform. These signals are detected at two positions along the GOCE orbit...