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Metastable He 1083 nm intensities in the twilight: A reconsideration
Author(s) -
Bishop James,
Link Richard
Publication year - 1993
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 - 10.1029/93gl01117
Subject(s) - airglow , metastability , twilight , helium , atomic physics , physics , scattering , computational physics , diffusion , photon , aeronomy , atmosphere (unit) , line of sight , atmospheric sciences , optics , astrophysics , meteorology , astronomy , thermodynamics , quantum mechanics
The 1083 nm airglow emission arising from the resonant scattering of solar photons by metastable He(2³ S ) atoms is potentially valuable for remote sensing of total photoelectron fluxes and neutral helium densities at altitudes above the F 2 peak. In this study, we adopt the diffusion picture used in all previous studies and point out that even within this crude approach, intensities consistent with the winter observations (≳1000 R) collected in Tinsley and Christensen [ J. Geophys. Res., 81 , 1253, 1976] are obtained when the correct parameter values for He(2³ S ) production, loss, and transport are applied and line‐of‐sight geometries are properly taken into account.