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Diurnal variation of temperature and wind in the equatorial stratosphere
Author(s) -
Hamilton R. A.,
Shearman R. J.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
quarterly journal of the royal meteorological society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.744
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1477-870X
pISSN - 0035-9009
DOI - 10.1002/qj.49709841715
Subject(s) - noon , sunrise , sunset , stratosphere , atmospheric sciences , diurnal temperature variation , environmental science , variation (astronomy) , equinox , climatology , geology , ionosphere , physics , astrophysics , astronomy , geophysics
Rocket soundings were made at Gan (0°41′S, 73°09′E) after sunset and before sunrise to determine the change of temperature and wind during the night. The soundings showed that the change of temperature varied with height, being positive around 54 km, negative around 44 km, and mainly positive between 30 and 40 km, in general agreement with Lindzen's tidal theory. The zonal wind also showed a tidal variation. An analysis of day and night rocket soundings at Ascension Island (07°59′S, 14°25′W) indicates that the winds show a tidal variation, but the heights of the isobaric surface in the stratosphere are always a maximum around noon, suggesting an error in the temperature measurements due to solar radiation.