South Pole Atmospheric Bores

• Main Author: Ashcroft, Mikaela
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: DigitalCommons@USU 2017
• Subjects: Amundsen Scott South Pole Station; Amundsen-Scott; Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station; South Pole; Antarc*; Antarctica; South pole
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/researchweek/ResearchWeek2017/Session5Poster/9

Bores are a natural wave phenomenon that occur in both the atmosphere and the oceans. They are relatively rare and appear as a sharp leading wave front followed by several trailing wave crests that grow in number as the bore propagates. Bores are one particular form of atmospheric “Gravity Waves” and recent measurements from Amundsen-Scott, South Pole Station have revealed an unexpectedly large number of “bore-like” wave events in the upper atmosphere, at altitudes of ~85 km, in the Earth’s upper mesosphere. The South Pole is a prime location for studying this atmospheric phenomenon because of the continuous nighttime conditions during the long winter months. This research project has been designed to detect and measure bores in the mesosphere through observations of the night sky from the months of April - August 2015, and April - August 2016. Determining the occurrence and properties of these bores over time provides evidence for the regularity of their sources, helping future studies of their dominant origins over Antarctica and at other sites around the world.