F-Region nightglow emissions of atomic oxygen: 2. Analysis of 6300 A and electron density data

Abstract

Nightglow 6300 A and electron density data from Maui, Hawaii, have been analyzed by using the formulas of the paper by Peterson, VanZandt, and Norton (referred to as part 1). The observed 6300 A emission is found to consist of two components. The primary component may vary considerably during the night, and its variations are explained satisfactorily by the chemical reactions discussed in part 1; these variations correspond to variations in the height, shape, and magnitude of the electron density profile. The secondary, or background, component does not seem to vary rapidly during the night but may vary considerably from one night to another. The source of the background component is unknown. It is shown that the magnitude deduced for it is insensitive to errors in the many parameters that enter the calculations. Finally, even though the theory given in part 1 does satisfactorily explain the observations, the pertinent chemical reactions seem to be inefficient in producing the 6300 A nightglow.

Field-aligned electric currents and their measurement by the incoherent backscatter technique

“…At night the intertropical red arc Lequently "breaks-up", causing airglow enhancements of irregular shapes and sizes (Barbier 1958, Petersen et al, 1966.…”

Night airglow zenith intensity variations at El Leoncito Observatory, Argentina

“…Monthly diurnal average intensities in rayleighs as a function of season for ),5577, X6300, and XX5890-5896 emissions during 1967. Plot of the XX5890-5896 data reported for the IQSY by Smith et al [1968] (a) for northern hemisphere stations Haute Provence, Kitt Peak, and Haleakala, and (b) for the southern hemisphere station Makatea plus the results of this study.place in the ionospheric F region[Packer, 1961;Huruhata et al, 1962;Roach et al, 1964;Peterson and Steiger, 1966]. The 'Barbier formula' is usually written as follows:Q = A •L B(IoF•.)…”

Spectroscopic studies of the twilight airglow

“…The post-twilight enhancement is certainly due to dissociative recombination, and the ion is almost certainly O~-, This process is also important in the dayglow, and is the dominant source of the nightglow emission of the red lines PETERSON and STEIGER, 1966). The first treatment of the post-twilight decay was given by BARBIER (1957BARBIER ( , 1959; the same conclusions were reached independently by , and confirmed by .…”

“…The description is satisfactory, especially if observed ion density distributions are used (PETERSON and STEIGER, 1966). A complete description would require knowledge of the ion diffusion and other drifts; at present this knowledge is inadequate.…”