11/1/2022 0 Comments Meteoroid pictures![]() ![]() Many types of radar can detect meteors, but here we will concentrate on purpose-built meteor radars used to investigate the dynamics and structure of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. ![]() Meteor radars have thus played an important role in elucidating many aspects of the dynamics of this part of the atmosphere, particularly with regard to the mean winds, tides, and planetary waves that dominate the flow at these heights. These regions are notoriously difficult to investigate experimentally because they are too high for in situ measurements other than those made by rockets. This is the upper part of the middle atmosphere and spans the upper mesosphere, the mesopause, and the lower thermosphere. Most radio meteor echoes are detected at heights between ∼70 and 110 km. Meteor trails are carried by the winds at the height where they form, and so HF- and VHF-radar Doppler measurements of the drift velocities of radio meteors allow determination of these winds – essentially using the meteors as tracers of atmospheric motion. Measuring radio waves reflected from the ionized trails that meteors create has proved a powerful tool in investigations of meteors and the region of the atmosphere in which they occur. Meteors, colloquially ‘shooting stars’, are among the most beautiful and striking phenomena of the naked-eye night sky. Mitchell, in Encyclopedia of Atmospheric Sciences, 2003 Introduction ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |