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The ionospheric oxygen Green airglow: Electron temperature dependence and aeronomical implications
Author(s) -
Peverall Robert,
Rosén Stefan,
Larsson Mats,
Peterson James R.,
Bobbenkamp Rolf,
Guberman Steven L.,
Danared Håkan,
af Ugglas Magnus,
Al Khalili Ahmed,
Maurellis Ahilleas N.,
van der Zande Wim J.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/1999gl010711
Subject(s) - airglow , dissociative recombination , ionosphere , atmosphere (unit) , electron , atomic physics , oxygen , rocket (weapon) , physics , ion , atmospheric sciences , chemistry , recombination , geophysics , meteorology , biochemistry , quantum mechanics , engineering , gene , aerospace engineering
The laboratory measurement of processes involved in terrestrial airglows is essential in developing diagnostic tools of the dynamics and photochemistry of the upper atmosphere. Dissociative electron recombination of O 2 + in the ionospheric F‐region is expected to produce both O(¹D) and O(¹S) which are the sources of the 630.0 nm red airglow and the 557.7 nm green airglow lines, respectively. We present both theoretical and experimental evidence, the latter from a heavy ion storage ring technique, that the O(¹S) quantum yield from O 2 + (υ = 0) is a strong function of the electron temperature due to a molecular resonance phenomenon. At present the O 2 + (υ = 0) theoretical and laboratory recombination data cannot explain rocket observations of the ionospheric green and red airglows [ Takahashi et al. 1990; Sobral et al. 1992].