Simulation of the behavior of excited gaseous components in the atmosphere of the Earth: Hot oxygen

Abstract

The existence of so-called hot oxygen in the atmosphere is substantiated by optical measurements of airglow at high altitudes. According to these observations, nonthermal oxygen concentration is maximum at an altitude of about 550 km, and its temperature is ∼4000 K. The presence of these atoms in the thermosphere causes changes in the thermodynamic conditions in the upper atmosphere of the Earth. In this work, we calculated the global distributions of hot oxygen concentrations and temperature using the Global Self-Consistent Model of Thermosphere, Ionosphere, and Protonosphere of the Earth (GSM TIP) taking into account the main photochemical and dynamic processes. Calculations were performed for moderate solar and geomagnetic activity and winter conditions of January, 2003. The hot oxygen maximum was located in latitude 60° South and at longitude 300° at 24 UT, and its temperature was ∼1500 K. This increased the general temperature of the atmosphere by 100 K in the daytime and 70 K at night. Changes in the speed of neutral gas reached 36 m/s.