Abstract
Theoretical and experimental aspects of the production, transformation, diffusion and loss of N2 in the upper atmosphere are considered. The N2-CO2 near-resonant system in theD andE regions is taken into account. We describe our understanding of the methods necessary to find the vibrational populations of N2 and CO2 (asymmetric mode of CO2). The calculations of the vibrational temperatures in theD, E, andF regions for the mid-latitude ionosphere and an aurora are presented. The connection between the excited species and the 4.26-μm radiation intensities is considered. The models for the rate coefficient of the reaction of O+ with N2 and the electron density decrease resulting from N2 in the F region are discussed.
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Pavlov, A.V. The role of vibrationally excited nitrogen in the ionosphere. PAGEOPH 127, 529–544 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00879824
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00879824