Reexamination of the O( 3 P→ 1 D) excitation rate by thermal electron impact

The theoretical and experimental electron impact excitation cross sections for the O( 3 P→ 1 D) transition that have been reported in the literature the last two decades are used to derive O( 3 P→ 1 D) excitation rates by thermal electron impact. The derived rates are represented by a simple parametric formula which should prove useful in atmospheric 6300‐Å airglow and electron gas thermal balance studies.