Gravity waves (GWs) are ubiquitous features of Earth’s atmosphere. They are primarily generated in the lower atmosphere, propagate upward, and have profound effects not only in the middle atmosphere, but also at much higher altitudes. However, their effects in the upper atmosphere beyond the turbopause (~105 km) have not been sufficiently studied. Using a general circulating model extending to the upper thermosphere and incorporating a whole atmosphere parameterization of GWs developed by Yiğit et al. (2008), we demonstrate that GW thermal and dynamical effects substantially extend into the upper atmosphere. GWs influence the general circulation of the thermosphere up to F region altitudes and are responsible for much of the observed variability. During sudden stratospheric warmings, GW propagation in the thermosphere is enhanced by a factor of three, producing appreciable drag, and the resultant impact on the variability of thermospheric zonal winds is up to +/- 50%.

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*email: eyigit@gmu.edu
*Preference: Poster