Spatial and temporal variability in MLT turbulence inferred from in situ and ground-based observations during the WADIS-1 sounding rocket campaign

• Published in: Annales Geophysicae
• Main Authors: Strelnikov, Boris, Szewczyk, Artur, Strelnikova, Irina, Latteck, Ralph, Baumgarten, Gerd, Lübken, Franz-Josef, Rapp, Markus, Fasoulas, Stefanos, Löhle, Stefan, Eberhart, Martin, Hoppe, Ulf-Peter, Dunker, Tim, Friedrich, Martin, Hedin, Jonas, Khaplanov, Mikhail, Gumbel, Jörg, Barjatya, Aroh
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: German
• Published: Copernicus Publications 2017
• Subjects: Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre; Andøya; Norway; Tromsø; EISCAT; Northern Norway
• Online Access: https://elib.dlr.de/111952/; https://elib.dlr.de/111952/1/StrelnikovAG17.pdf; https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-547-2017

In summer 2013 the WADIS-1 sounding rocket campaign was conducted at the Andøya Space Center (ACS) in northern Norway (69° N, 16° E). Among other things, it addressed the question of the variability in mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) turbulence, both in time and space. A unique feature of the WADIS project was multi-point turbulence sounding applying different measurement techniques including rocket-borne ionization gauges, VHF MAARSY radar, and VHF EISCAT radar near Tromsø. This allowed for horizontal variability to be observed in the turbulence field in the MLT at scales from a few to 100 km. We found that the turbulence dissipation rate, " varied in space in a wavelike manner both horizontally and in the vertical direction. This wavelike modulation reveals the same vertical wavelengths as those seen in gravity waves.