Effect of the annular solar eclipse of 15 January 2010 on the low latitude mesosphere

Abstract

In the present study, we mainly tested two existing hypotheses linked with the solar eclipse effect on the middle atmosphere. One is on the VHF radar mesospheric echo occurrence characteristics and another on the wave generation and propagation. Significant reduction in the echo occurrence is found during the maximum epoch of the eclipse as expected. Estimations on D-region electron density during the eclipse day and on a normal day are also made. High frequency gravity waves (30min–1h) in the vicinity of the eclipse path are detected in the troposphere and mesosphere, which is not expected.