Nadir images of Rayleigh scattered UV sunlight (265 nm) from the Cloud Imaging and Particle Size (CIPS) instrument on the Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) satellite contain many periodic structures. These structures are believed to be the result of Gravity Waves (GW). In this work, we investigate the theoretical impact of GWs on the albedo imagery. We show that GWs are indeed capable of producing the observed structures. The sensitivity to GW perturbations peaks at an altitude of ~50 km with a FWHM of ~15 km. For vertical wavelengths greater than 15 km, this corresponds to GWs with momentum fluxes greater than ~0.1-0.01 mPa. Vertical wavelengths less than ~10 km require amplitudes larger than static stability considerations allow, so these GWs are not observable. Observable horizontal wavelengths range from approximately 20 to 300 km. These wavelength ranges correspond to a sensitivity to GWs with an intrinsic period shorter than ~2.5 hrs.

Existing satellite GW studies in this altitude region use limb scanners or microwave nadir imagers, which are sensitive to much longer horizontal wavelengths. This tends to limit the sensitivity to longer period waves. Therefore, the addition of CIPS imagery to the existing coverage of GW measurements is complimentary - significantly expanding the spectral coverage of GWs near the stratopause. Further, conservative low bound estimates on the mean momentum flux carried by the GWs CIPS observes show monthly mean values of similar order to those observed in the longer period portion of the spectrum.

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*email: jcar@vt.edu
*Preference: Poster