Climatology of planetary wave type oscillations with periods of 2–20 days derived from O₂ atmospheric and OH(6-2) airglow observations at mid-latitude with SATI

Abstract. The presence of planetary wave type oscillations at mid-latitudes in the mesosphere/lower thermosphere region has been investigated using airglow observations. The observations were taken with a Spectral Airglow Temperature Imager (SATI) installed at Sierra Nevada Observatory (37.06° N, 3.38° W) at 2900 m height. Airglow data of the column emission rate of the O₂ Atmospheric (0-1) band and of the OH Meinel (6-2) band and deduced rotational temperatures from 1998 to 2007 have been used in this study. From these observations a climatology of planetary wave type oscillations at this location is inferred. It has been found that the planetary wave type oscillations of 5-day period is predominant in our data throughout the year, with activity greater than 50% during March/April and October/November months. The planetary wave type oscillations of 2-day period is predominant during both solstices, being predominant during winter solstice in O₂ while a 10-day oscillation appears throughout the year with activity around 20% and with maximum activity during spring and autumn equinoxes. The 16-day oscillation has maximum occurrence during autumn-winter while its activity is almost disappeared during spring-summer. No clear seasonal dependence of the amplitude of the planetary wave type oscillations was observed in the cases considered in this study.

The waves simultaneously detected in the rotational temperatures deduced from both OH and O₂ emissions usually show an upward energy propagation and are affected by dissipation processes.