THEORETICALLY PERMISSIBLE ALTITUDES AND SEASONS FOR THE OCCURRENCE OF CLOUDS NEAR THE MESOPAUSE

Abstract

A thermodynamic exclusion principle is used to determine those regions in the earth's upper atmosphere where the formation of clouds due to condensation or sublimation of water vapor is or is not possible. The probability of occurrence of such clouds is then determined from model atmospheres as a function of altitude for different latitudes and seasons. The theoretical results correspond well with actually observed locations, frequencies, and altitudes of noctilucent clouds. It is shown that statistical analysis of certain noctilucent cloud data should not only permit experimental tests of the theoretical study, but also provide, by inference, information about variations of the mesopause altitude with latitude, season, and solar activity.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 1964
Accession Number
AD0435637

Entities

People

  • G. F. Schilling

Organizations

  • RAND Corporation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Pressure
  • Altitude
  • Atmospheres
  • Atmospheric Temperature
  • Barometric Pressure
  • Boundaries
  • Clouds
  • Data Analysis
  • High Altitude
  • Noctilucent Clouds
  • Partial Pressure
  • Solar Activity
  • Statistical Analysis
  • Transition Temperature
  • Vapor Pressure
  • Vapors
  • Water Vapor

Readers

  • Atmospheric Science/Meteorology
  • Regression Analysis.

Technology Areas

  • AI & ML
  • AI & ML - Bayesian Inference