ALBERT

Description: The thinning and intensification of the cross tail current sheet during the substorm growth phase are analyzed during the CDAW 6 substorm (22 Mar. 1979) using two complementary methods. The magnetic field and current sheet development are determined using data from two spacecraft and a global magnetic field model with several free parameters. These results are compared with the local calculation of the current sheet location and structure previously done by McPherron et al. Both methods lead to the conclusion that an extremely thin current sheet existed prior to the substorm onset, and the thicknesses estimated by the two methods at substorm onset agree relatively well. The plasma data from the ISEE 1 spacecraft at 13 R(sub E) show an anisotropy in the low energy electrons during the growth phase which disappears just before the substorm onset. The global magnetic model results suggest that the field is sufficiently stretched to scatter such low energy electrons. The strong stretching may improve the conditions for the growth of the ion tearing instability in the near Earth tail at substorm onset.

Description: An approach to the study of the solar wind-magnetosphere interaction by signal type, that is, by examining the effect in the magnetosphere of well defined interplanetary structures, is presented. Focus is on the response of the magnetosphere to interplanetary magnetic clouds. Among their properties are: the slow and smooth variation of the magnetic field vector, with fluctuation level well below common interplanetary values; the similarly well behaved bulk flow; the wide range of field and flow parameters; and the longevity of passage (1 to 2 days). If the magnetic cloud is oriented such that a long period of uninterruptedly northward pointing field is followed by a long interval of continuously southward pointing field, then the transition of the magnetosphere from a quiescent state (the 'ground state') to a very active state can be studied, the latter being sustained by continued forcing from the magnetic cloud. A synopsis of the main findings of a recent study in such an interaction is given, concentrating on the substorm activity attending the second part of cloud passage.

Description: The stability of the geomagnetic tail is investigated on the basis of three dimensional resistive magnetohydrodynamic simulations, using different dynamic constraints and different initial equilibria. Different forms of the energy equation for isotropic pressure are found to have no significant effect on the dynamic growth of a resistive tearing instability, which is responsible for near Earth reconnection, plasmoid formation and ejection, and the generation of fast plasma flows. The constraints of a modified double adiabatic approach, however, can quench the tearing instability through the development of large, mirror type, anisotropies in the boundary regions of the plasma sheet, unless isotropization occurs on fast, nearly Alfvenic, time scales. The presence of a net cross tail magnetic field component B(sub yN) can reduce the growth of the instability without complete stabilization. An increase of B(sub z) from midnight toward the tail flanks, however, by more than a factor of about 3, apparently completely stabilizes the tearing mode. Stabilization and destabilization thus may depend on properties and constraints (and their release) in regions other than the neutral sheet where reconnection is initiated.

Description: Issues concerning the 'driven' versus 'unloading' nature of substorms are presented. The original concepts attendant to this debate are presented and substorms are concluded to inextricably combine aspects that are driven with aspects that represent a loading-unloading system. For isolated substorms, the magnetosphere-ionosphere system is shown to exhibit a bimodal response to solar wind changes. A 20 min response characteristic is associated with the driven aspect of substorms, while a 1 hr response time is associated with unloading. It is found that for strong solar wind input conditions, the magnetospheric response becomes more nearly unimodal. This is interpreted in terms of a nonlinear dynamical evolution of the system. Simple analog models are described which capture the essence of the nonlinear magnetospheric behavior. These models exhibit chaotic transitions for strong driving conditions: this may explain the observed behavior of the magnetosphere during strong geomagnetic activity.

Description: A pseudobreakup is a phenomenon similar to the substorm expansive phase onset, including an activation of an auroral arc, a burst of Pi2 micropulsations, and enhancement of the westward electrojet. However, these effects are weak and a pseudobreak is generally assumed to be very localized. The pseudobreakups are discussed based on simultaneous observations made in space and on the ground during the substorm growth phase. In the events studied the main features listed above are found, but the significance of the localization is unclear. The optical pseudobreakup, with associated magnetic perturbations, is highly localized, but simultaneously a wide local time sector of the auroral oval may be activated. The major differences between pseudobreakups and substorm expansive phase onsets are concluded to be the intensity and the development that follows. Careful study of pseudobreakups may help to determine phase initiation, and the role of the ionosphere-magnetosphere coupling in the substorm process.

Description: On an hourly time-scale the different roles of the solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) parameters on ground micropulsation activity can be better investigated than at longer time-scales. A long-term comparison between ground measurements made at L'Aquila and IMP 8 observations confirms the solar wind speed as the key parameter for the onset of pulsations even at low latitudes, although additional control of the energy transfer from the interplanetary medium to the earth's magnetosphere is clearly exerted by the cone angle. Above about 20 mHz the frequency of pulsations is confirmed to be closely related to the IMF magnitude while, in agreement with model predictions, the IMF magnitude is related to the amplitude of the local fundamental resonant mode. We provide an interesting example in which high resolution measurements simultaneously obtained in the foreshock region and on the ground show that external transversal fluctuations do not penetrate deep into the low latitude magnetosphere.

Description: This paper discusses in situ measurements of O3, aerosol number density, and aerosol size obtained during NASA Arctic Boundary Layer Expedition aircraft flights over the Alaskan Arctic region. The major source of summer O3 for the troposphere in the intrusion of stratospheric air and subsequent transport to lower altitudes. Photochemistry of mixed layer emissions and O3 transported from high northern latitude urban/industrialized areas do not appear to play major roles as sources of O3 for the Alaska region. O3 gradients reflect the loss at the surface and supply from the stratosphere. Free tropospheric O3 averaged 74 ppbv compared to 32 ppbv for the mixed layer. O3 loss mechanisms are a combination of the destruction via photochemistry, chemical reaction with surface emissions, and direct loss through deposition to the surface. The boreal forest in the most efficient of the O3 sinks and has the largest increase in aerosol number density relative to the free troposphere.

Description: In the aftermath of the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, multiwavelength stratospheric aerosol extinction measurements by the satellite-borne Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment (SAGE II) revealed the presence of a previously unobserved mode of aerosol that exhibited high extinction but a small inferred particle size. This mode may represent a transitional phase between the very small aerosol created by gas-to-particle conversion and a quasi-steady state, post-volcanic aerosol that exhibits both large extinction and large particle size. The presence of a transitional small aerosol mode may have a significant impact on chemical and radiative processes in the stratosphere.

Description: CO2 exchange rates were measured at selected tundra sites near Bethel, Alaska using portable, climate-controlled, instrumented enclosures. The empirically modeled exchange rate for a representative area of vegetated tundra was 1.2 +/- 1.2 g/sq m/d, compared to a tower-measured exchange over the same time period of 1.1 +.0- 1.2 g/sq m/d. Net exchange in response to varying light levels was compared to wet meadow and dry upland tundra, and to the net exchange measured by the micrometeoroidal tower technique. The multispectral reflectance properties of the sites were measured and related to exchange rates in order to provide a quantitative foundation for the use of satellite remote sensing to monitor biosphere/atmosphere CO2 exchange in the tundra biome.

Description: Enhanced concentrations of CH4 in the unpolluted atmospheric mixed layer over both Arctic and subarctic tundra landscapes are documented here using data from the NASA Arctic Boundary Layer Expedition (ABLE 3A). The CH4 concentration gradients were determined mainly by interactions of biogenic emission from wet tundra and turbulent mixing proceses. The gradient were most frequently associated with intrusion of upper tropospheric or stratospheric air into the midtroposphere, emissions from forest and tundra fires, and long-range transport of enhanced concentration of these gases from unidentified sources. Summertime haze layers exhibited midtropospheric enhancements of CH4 similar to those measured in winter Arctic events. The observations confirm the importance of Arctic and Subarctic wetland environments as a regional source of global atmospheric CH4.

Description: The oxidation of the earth's crust and the increase in atmospheric oxygen early in earth history have been linked to the accumulation of reduced carbon in sedimentary rocks. Trends in the carbon isotope composition of sedimentary organic carbon and carbonate show that during the Proterozoic aeon (2.5-0.54 Gyr ago) the organic carbon reservoir grew in size, relative to the carbonate reservoir. This increase, and the concomitant release of oxidizing power in the environment, occurred mostly during episodes of global rifting and orogeny.

Description: Recently available spectral O3 line parameters are summarized and progress in remote sensing based on these parameters is discussed. Particular attention is given to covering line positions, line intensities and linewidths for both the main isotopic species (O-16)3 and the isotopic variants (O-16)(O-18)(O-16) and (O-16)(O-16)(O-18).

Description: The paper presents Alouette 2/ISIS 1 data which furnish evidence for the stimulation of high-order D(n) resonances (n greater than 4) by topside sounders, confirming the prediction of Osherovich (1990) based on an analogy with naturally occurring narrowband magnetospheric emissions. The results indicate that observations of stimulated ionospheric emissions and naturally occurring magnetospheric emissions can be used as complementary data sets to address such fundamental questions as the nature of the excitation mechanism for these emissions and the nature of the waves (i.e., whether the waves predominantly electrostatic or with a significant magnetic component present), and the question of the dominance among the Dn, Dn(+), and Dn(-) resonances and the conditions required for all three to be present at the same time.

Description: Ground magnetic field perturbations recorded by the CANOPUS magnetometer network in the 7 to 13 MLT sector are used to examine how reconfigurations of the dayside polar ionospheric flow take place in response to north-south changes of the IMF. During the 6-h interval in question, IMF Bz oscillates between +/- 7 nT with about a 1-h period. Corresponding variations in the ground magnetic disturbance are observed which we infer are due to changes in ionospheric flow. Cross correlation of the data obtained from two ground stations at 73.5 deg magnetic latitude, but separated by about 2 hours in MLT, shows that changes in the flow are initiated in the prenoon sector (about 10 MLT) and then spread outward toward dawn and dusk with a phase speed of about 5 km/s over the longitude range about 8 to 12 MLT, slowing to about 2 km/s outside this range. Cross correlating the data from these ground stations with IMP 8 IMF Bz records produces a MLT variation in the ground response delay relative to the IMF which is compatible with these deduced phase speeds.

Description: The particle scattering and current sheet stability features in the geomagnetic tail during the phase of substorm growth were investigated using Tsyganenko's (1989) magnetic field model. In a study of four substorm events which were observed both in the high-altitude nightside tail and in the auroral ionosphere, the model magnetic field was adjusted to each case so as to represent the global field development during the growth phase of the substorms. The model results suggest that the auroral brightenings are connected with processes taking place in the near-earth region inside about 15 earth radii. The results also suggest that there is a connection between the chaotization of the electrons and the auroral brightenings at substorm onset.

Description: Alternative geometries for the present-day configuration of plate boundaries in northeast Asia and Japan are tested using NUVEL-1 and 256 horizontal earthquake slip vectors from the Japan and northern Kuril trenches. Statistical analysis of the slip vectors is used to determine whether the North American, Eurasian, or Okhotsk plate overlies the trench. Along the northern Kuril trench, slip vectors are well-fit by the NUVEL-1 Pacific-North America Euler pole, but are poorly fit by the Pacific-Eurasia Euler pole. Results for the Japan trench are less conclusive, but suggest that much of Honshu and Hokkaido are also part of the North American plate. The simplest geometry consistent with the trench slip vectors is a geometry in which the North American plate extends south to 41 deg N, and possibly includes northern Honshu and southern Hokkaido. Although these results imply that the diffuse seismicity that connects the Lena River delta to Sakhalin Island and the eastern Sea of Japan records motion between Eurasia and North America, onshore geologic and seismic data define an additional belt of seismicity in Siberia that cannot be explained with this geometry. Assuming that these two seismic belts constitute evidence for an Okhotsk block, two published kinematic models for motion of the Okhotsk block are tested. The first model, which predicts motion of up to 15 mm/yr relative to North America, is rejected because Kuril and Japan trench slip vectors are fit more poorly than for the simpler geometry described above. The second model gives a good fit to the trench slip vectors, but only if Okhotsk-North America motion is slower than 5 mm/yr.

Description: The BATSE on-board burst system has been triggered by over 400 terrestrial electron precipitation events. These are the single largest cause of false triggers. Bremsstrahlung is generated as the precipitating electrons interact in the Earth's atmosphere, or in the spacecraft, and this radiation is detected by the Large Area Detectors, often triggering the instrument into burst mode. Several examples of such events are presented here, and the different classes of events are described. A possible correlation of events to strong magnetospheric activity is presented, and the association of a sub-set of events to a powerful VLF transmitter on the western coast of Australia is described.

Description: The Tsyganenko models contain 'modules' for two external current systems, the tail and ring currents; the former is the more detailed. No specific modules, however, cover the magnetopause and the Birkeland current system. The effects of these currents are represented by an all-purpose 'polynomial', and the resulting formulas involve about 30 parameters that specify the model. The dependence on magnetospheric indices is also simplified.

Description: Remote sensing of aerosol optical thickness from space is difficult over continental surfaces. There are two retrieval algorithms, one based on the use of dark targets and a second based on contrast reduction between selected pixels. Improvements in the contrast reduction method are reported. A procedure is developed for using the satellite image to evaluate whether conditions for applying the structure method are met. The theoretical background is discussed, and the usefulness of the structure functions is demonstrated. The method is applied to NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) imagery where simultaneous ground measurements are used for validation.

Description: Accounts are given of the development status and prospective efficacy of the Geoscience Environmental Data Display, the Space Environment Laboratory Data Acquisition and Display System, and the Geospace Environment Modeling program, which are all concerned with the 3D definition of the earth's magnetosphere. Attention is given to current and prospective improvements in the integration of all these data-gathering systems.

Description: The joint hypocentral determination method is used to relocate deep seismicity reported in the International Seismological Center catalog for earthquakes deeper than 400 km in the Honshu, Bonin, Mariannas, Java, Banda, and South America subduction zones. Each deep seismic zone is found to display planar features of seismicity parallel to the Harvard centroid-moment tensor nodal planes, which are identified as planes of shear failure. The sense of displacement on these planes is one of resistance to deeper penetration.

Description: Stratospheric aerosol collections by wire impactors, taken mainly over the western U.S. from early 1984 to late 1986, show the diminishing effects of El Chichon's 1982 eruption, and provide a set of data for judging subsequent volcanic effects. Decrease in sulfate burden during the study time is due to preferential gravitational settling-out of large (above 0.5-micron diameter) sulfate aerosol droplets. As a result of settling from higher levels, lower altitude (12.2-15.2 km) air early in 1984 tends to contain more sulfate than higher level (19.8-21.3 km) air. As of late 1986, however, high- and low-altitude sulfate contents have decreased and are similar, suggesting large-particle settling has been completed. The later sulfate collection size distributions resemble unimodal background spectra, whereas earlier ones are bimodal. Average sulfate load for all altitudes decreases during the period of study from 0.4 to 0.08 microgram/cu m. The latter value is somewhat higher than a volcanically unenriched pre-El Chichon level, suggesting that even as of 1987, stratospheric background had not been obtained.

Description: The results of limitation studies performed with the UARS MLS are presented. A consistent set of algorithms allows the extraction of the spectral coefficients in time and longitude from asynoptically sampled satellite data and the subsequent reconstruction of synoptic maps from that spectral information. In addition to providing synoptic maps, the asynoptic technique allows the use of standard spectral analysis tools such as autocorrelation and cross correlation.

Description: Airglow and chemical processes in the terrestrial mesosphere and lower thermosphere are reviewed, and initial parameterizations of the processes applicable to multidimensional models are presented. The basic processes by which absorbed solar energy participates in middle atmosphere energetics for absorption events in which photolysis occurs are illustrated. An approach that permits the heating processes to be incorporated in numerical models is presented.

Description: Attention is given to a program to compare stratospheric models and measurements to calculate the atmospheric effects of emissions of a projected fleet of High Speed Civil Transports on the stratosphere is presented. The goals of the effort is to establish a standard set of atmospheric measurements that can be used to test the reliability of atmospheric chemistry models, develop a method for evaluating model/data comparisons, and direct the first major international stratospheric model/data comparison.

Description: Multispectra aerosol extinction data for the fall and spring of 1987 measured by the SAGE II sensor are employed to determine the physical characteristics of aerosols within the springtime Antarctic polar vortex. Attention is given to the physical processes that give rise to the apparent springtime 'cleansing' of the Antarctic stratosphere. The inferred vertical and radial structure compare favorably with in situ measurements but yield a previously unavailable 2D structure to the distribution of aerosols within the polar vortex. The springtime 'cleansing' of the Antarctic stratosphere is found to be a result of both large-scale subsidence and the preferential removal of large particles by the nucleation and subsequent sedimentation of polar stratospheric clouds.

Description: The NASA Langley 3D GCM chemical transport model is used to investigate the distribution of atmospheric N2O up to 60 km altitude. The transport characteristics of the model is evaluated without the complications of a detailed chemical formulation for all of the relevant stratospheric minor constituents. Interpretation of the yearly average zonal mean N2O distribution in terms of transport by the yearly averaged meridional circulation and stratospheric photochemical loss indicates large regions in the Northern Hemisphere stratosphere where dynamical mixing apparently plays a large role in maintaining the N2O distribution. In these regions, slopes of the N2O mixing ratio isopleths are maintained by competition between advection by the meridional circulation acting to steepen and dynamical mixing acting to flatten the slopes.

Description: The paper discusses the atmospheric distribution of natural and man-made nonmethane hydrocarbons (NMHCs), the major species of airborne NMHCs, and their sources and sinks. Particular attention is given to the techniques for measuring atmospheric NMHCs; diurnal and seasonal variations of atmospheric NMHCs and differences between rural, urban, and marine environments; latitudinal and vertical distributions; and available stratospheric NMHC measurements. A formula defining the atmospheric lifetime of a NMHC from its reaction rates with OH and O3 is presented.

Description: An improved model of the Earth's gravitational field is developed from a combination of conventional satellite tracking, satellite altimeter measurements, and surface gravimetric data (GEM-T3). This model gives improved performance for the computation of satellite orbital effects as well as a superior representation of the geoid from that achieved in any previous Goddard Earth Model. The GEM-T3 model uses altimeter data directly to define the orbits, geoid, and dynamic height fields. Altimeter data acquired during the GEOS-3 (1975-1976), SEASAT (1978), and GEOSAT (1986-1987) missions were used to compute GEM-T3. In order to accommodate the non-gravitational signal mapped by these altimeters, spherical harmonic models of the dynamic height of the ocean surface were recovered for each mission simultaneously with the gravitational field. The tracking data utilized in the solution includes more than 1300 arcs of data encompassing 31 different satellites. The observational data base is highly dependent on SLR, but also includes TRANET Doppler, optical, S-Band average range-rate and satellite-to-satellite tracking acquired between ATS-6 and GEOS-3. The GEM-T3 model has undergone extensive error calibration.

Description: Measurements of total ozone at Macquarie Island (55 deg S, 159 deg E) reveal statistically significant reductions of approximately twelve percent during July to September when comparing the mean levels for 1987-90 with those in the seventies. A back-correction of 1963-79 Macquarie Island monthly mean ozone data is described which enabled this comparison.

Description: The satellite observation of a large, about 40-mV/m, transient electric field disturbance over Hurricane Debbie in September 1982 is reported. The electric field event is viewed as a spheric disturbance from a lightning discharge in the active weather system located beneath the satellite. To elucidate this observation of upward moving electrons in the ionosphere associated with a lightning event, several mechanisms for electron acceleration by electric field with components, E(parallel), along the magnetic field are compared. 'Runaway' electrons were accelerated in about 1 ms by a downward directed E(parallel) pulse of about 1 V/m magnitude. Such fields can result from rapidly exposed, negative space charges near the tops of clouds during positive cloud-to-ground discharges. HF frequency Fourier components of the E(parallel) pulse must propagate through the low-conducting nighttime atmosphere to the ionosphere with little dissipation.

Description: The seasonal behavior of low latitude mesospheric ozone, as observed by the SMM satellite solar occultation experiment, is detailed for the 1985-1989 period. Annual as well as semi-annual waves are observed in the 50-70 km altitude region. In the latitude range of +/- 30 deg the ozone phase and amplitude are functions of temperature and seasonal changes in solar flux. Temperature is the controlling factor for the equatorial region and seasonal changes in solar flux become more dominant at latitudes outside the equatorial zone (greater than +/- 15 deg). There is a hemispheric asymmetry in the ozone annual wave in the 20-30 deg region, with Northern Hemispheric ozone having a larger amplitude than Southern Hemispheric ozone.

Description: The present study compares small-scale (less than 100 km) features in ER-2 measurements of ClO, O3, H2O, N2O, and NO(y) outside the lower stratospheric Arctic vortex of 1988-1989 with features on potential vorticity maps from ECMWF. The potential vorticity maps are obtained from T106 analyses and forecasts. Some of the plots were truncated to lower resolution (T63 or T42) which smooths out the finer-scale structure. Comparison of these lower resolution plots shows how much detail is lost by excessive smoothing. It is also evident that the forecast plots lose fine-scale structure due to dissipation in the model resulting mainly from horizontal diffusion. It is concluded that blobs of air on the maps at latitudes between the vortex edge and 25 deg N having potential vorticities characteristic of the vortex did indeed originate from the vortex, but that the real atmosphere is more sharply differentiated than the meteorological analyses, implying that the potential vorticity maps underestimate the amount of peeled-off material.

Description: The empirical models related to solar-terrestrial sciences are listed and described which are available in the form of computer programs. Also included are programs that use one or more of these models for application specific purposes. The entries are grouped according to the region of their solar-terrestrial environment to which they belong and according to the parameter which they describe. Regions considered include the ionosphere, atmosphere, magnetosphere, planets, interplanetary space, and heliosphere. Also provided is the information on the accessibility for solar-terrestrial models to specify the magnetic and solar activity conditions.

Description: Results of ozone and Aitken condensation nuclei measurements made over the rain forest in equatorial Africa during February 12-25, 1988 are presented. The results indicate the presence of a layer between 1 and 4 km altitude where these species are strongly enriched. Based on information derived from simultaneous measurements of other chemical and meteorological parameters, satellite imagery, and trajectory calculations, this enrichment is attributed to emissions from biomass burning in sub-Saharan Africa, from which ozone is formed by photochemical reactions.

Description: On April 9-11, 1983, the ISEE 3 spacecraft was continuously located within the earth's magnetotail for more than 36 hours at downstream distances of X = -76 to -80 R(e). During this span of time, 12 major intervals of substorm activity were observed in the AL index with good ISEE 3 telemetry coverage for 11 of them. In addition, there were two small substorms outside of these intervals, both with complete observations in the distant tail. This unusual ISEE 3 data set provides a unique opportunity to test the predictions of the near-earth neutral line model. In particular, the hypothesis that energy stored in the tail lobes during the growth phase is later dissipated, in part, through the release of one or more plasmoids following expansion phase onset is examined. Clear growth phase enhancements in the lobe magnetic field intensity preceded the onsets of nine of the substorms. Plasmoids, or their lobe signatures, traveling compression regions (TCRs), were observed at ISEE 3 in association with all 11 of the major substorm intervals for which there were ISEE observations, as well as for the two small substorms. No plasmoids or TCRs were observed in the absence of substorm activity. If these ISEE 3 observations are representative, then the release of plasmoids down the tail may be a feature common to all substorms.

Description: Daily determinations of the earth's pole position from GPS observations obtained during the first GPS IERS and Geodynamics (GIG) experiment are interpreted in terms of atmospheric wind and pressure fluctuations. Evidence is reported for atmospheric excitation of the rapid polar motions observed during the 23-day period from 22 January to 13 February, 1991. It is demonstrated that atmospheric wind and pressure fluctuations are mostly responsible for exciting the rapid polar motions observed during GIG '91.

Description: Using 21 days of GPS data from 21 globally distributed receivers operating during early 1991, a 7-parameter transformation between a GPS free-network solution and coordinates of 12 stations listed in the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF) is solved. Standard errors of GPS coordinates are derived by applying an orthogonal projection operator to the free-network covariance. The weighted rms difference between 33 transformed GPS and ITRF coordinates is 12 mm in the Northern Hemisphere. Best results are obtained by mapping ITRF coordinates to the epoch of this experiment assuming no vertical site motions. Fixing selected sites in the GPS solution to ITRF '90 does not improve the agreement. It is concluded that the use of fiducial constraints is unnecessary for global networks.

Description: Daily estimates of the earth's pole position have been obtained with measurements from a worldwide network of GPS receivers, obtained during the three week GIG '91 experiment in January-February 1991. For this short-term study, the GPS based polar motion series agrees with the other space based geodetic techniques (Very Long Baseline Interferometry and Satellite Laser Ranging) to about 0.4 mas rms, after the removal of mean biases of order 1-3 mas. The small error in day-to-day variability is not sensitive to the fiducial strategy used, nor are fiducial sites even necessary for monitoring high frequency pole position variability. The small biases indicate that the applied reference frames of the three geodetic techniques are nearly aligned, that the GPS fiducial errors are small, and that systematic errors in GPS are also small (of order 5 ppb). A well determined reference frame is necessary for monitoring the long-term stability of polar motion and for separating it from other long-term signals such as tectonic motion and internal systematic errors.

Description: Recent findings, based on both ground-based and satellite measurements, have established that there has been an apparent downward trend in the total column amount of ozone over mid-latitude areas of the Northern Hemisphere in all seasons. Measurements of the altitude profile of the change in the ozone concentration have established that decreases are taking place in the lower stratosphere in the region of highest ozone concentration. Analysis of updated ozone records, through March of 1991, including 29 stations in the former Soviet Union, and analysis of independently calibrated satellite data records from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer and Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment instruments confirm many of the findings originally derived from the Dobson record concerning northern midlatitude changes in ozone. The data from many instruments now provide a fairly consistent picture of the change that has occurred in stratospheric ozone levels.

Description: The effects of heterogeneous processing by a parameterized lower stratospheric sulfate aerosol layer on model calculations were examined using a 2D photochemical model. Model results were compared with zonally averaged LIMS data on HNO3 and NO2 and in situ measurements of NO, NO(y), and ClO, taken by the ER-2 aircraft. The results obtained are contradictory: some comparisons favor heterogeneous chemistry, and some do not. It is suggested that the assumptions made to parameterize the sulfate aerosol chemistry result in a rate of heterogeneous processing that is too vigorous.

Description: Ozone mixing ratios in the vicinity of the 525-K potential temperature surface in January and early February of 1990 were observed to decrease sharply across the edge of the vortex boundary, where the vortex position was estimated from Ertel's potential vorticity. The changes in NO(y) mixing ratio with respect to altitude measured on January 18 and 31 were quite well correlated with those of ozone between 15 and 24 km, indicating that NO(y) also had a large gradient across the edge of the vortex. This is interpreted as being mainly due to the significant denitrification that occurred inside the vortex. The total amount of gas and particulate phase HNO3 was close to the NO(y) amount at the altitude of the 22- to 23-km region, suggesting that the conversion of non-HNO3 reactive nitrogen to HNO3 had occurred with a PSC.

Description: Observations of the nearly inert, man-made chlorofluorocarbon CFC-115 obtained during January 1989 are used to infer the age of air in the lower stratosphere. These observations together with estimated release rates suggest an average age of high-latitude air at pressure altitudes near 17-21 km of about 3 to 5 yr. This information is used together with direct measurements of HCFC-22, HCFC-142b, CH3Br, H-1301, H-1211, and H-2402 to examine the fractional dissociation of these species within the Arctic polar lower stratosphere compared to that of CFC-11 and hence to estimate their local ozone depletion potentials in this region. It is shown that these HCFCs are much less efficiently dissociated within the stratosphere than CFC-11, lowering their ozone depletion potentials to only about 30-40 percent of their chlorine loading potentials. In contrast, the observations of CH3Br and the Halons considered confirm that they are rapidly dissociated within the stratosphere, with important implications for their ozone depletion potentials.

Description: Global Positioning System (GPS) data from a worldwide geodetic experiment were collected during a 3-week period early in 1991. Geocentric station coordinates were estimated using the GPS data, thus defining a dynamically determined reference frame origin which should coincide with the earth center of mass, or geocenter. The 3-week GPS average geocenter estimates agree to 7-13 cm with geocenter estimates determined from satellite laser ranging, a well-established technique. The RMS of daily GPS geocenter estimates were 4 cm for x and y, and 30 cm for z.

Description: A characteristic of Pc 5 pulsation in the morning sector is determined by use of ground magnetometer and riometer data, in conjunction with data acquired with satellites which include the magnetic fields above the ionosphere and electron fluxes at geosynchronous orbit. It is found that the onset of a flux increase in energetic electrons of 30 keV to 200 keV at geosynchronous orbit almost coincides with the onset of Pc 5 pulsation activity and riometer absorption on the ground. It is confirmed when the Pc 5 pulsation occurs on the ground, the large-scale Birkeland current system observed at ionospheric altitude splits into a number of small-scale Birkeland current pairs. It is inferred that the electron flux enhancement, presumably supplied from the tail plasma sheet associated with the substorm onset, provides stress to cause the background large-scale plasma vortex to split into the small-scale vortices. It is suggested that the field-aligned currents in the small-scale vortices propagate along the field lines and sustain the standing Alfvenic oscillations at several different, but neighboring shells of the field lines.

Description: A solar EUV index for aeronomical studies at earth, obtained from the Langmuir probe measurement of photoelectron current on the Pioneer Venus orbiter, is presented. To examine the potential of E sub EUV as a solar EUV flux index, the behavior of ionospheric parameters f sub 0 E, f sub 0 F1, and f sub 0 F2 are studied at midlatitude stations, and their relationship with E sub EUV and with the 10.7-cm solar radio flux is compared. f sub 0 F1 and f sub 0 F2 are found to be better correlated with E sub EUV than with the 10.7-cm flux. F sub 0 E is better correlated with the 10.7-cm flux, because the 10.7-cm flux is also a proxy for soft X-rays, which are an important ionizing source in the E region. A table is also presented for the EUV index, E sub EUV, for the period February 12, 1979, through most of 1991.

Description: Shuttle Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SSBUV) spectrometer observations of ozone concentrations in the upper stratosphere made in October 1989 are combined here with measurements made in October 1980 by the similar SBUV instruments on NASA's Nimbus-7 satellite. It is shown that the ozone concentration near 45 km has decreased during this period by about 7 +/- 2 percent. The trend is consistent with predictions of a 2D photochemical model.

Description: Simultaneous measurements of the stratospheric burdens of CO2, HCN, N2O, CH4, OCS, CF2Cl2, CFCl3, CHF2Cl and HF were made by the Jet propulsion Laboratory MkIV interferometer on board the NASA DC-8 aircraft during January and early February 1989 as part of the Airborne Arctic Stratosphere Experiment. Data were acquired on 11 flights at altitudes of up to 12 km over a geographic region covering the NE Atlantic Ocean, Iceland and Greenland. The results obtained show large variations in the burdens of these tracers due to the effects of transport. The tropospheric source gas burdens were reduced inside the polar vortex, suggesting that the air had subsided with respect to the surrounding midlatitude air. Increased HF burdens inside the vortex support this interpretation. The results obtained from the different tracers are highly consistent with each other and indicate that in the 15- to 20-km altitude range inside the vortex, surfaces of constant volume mixing ratio were located some 5-6 km lower in absolute altitude than outside the vortex. The results also indicate that the magnitude of this subsidence increases with altitude. These conclusions are consistent with other measurements.

Description: The paper uses particle size and volume measurements obtained with the forward scattering spectrometer probe model 300 during January and February 1989 in the Airborne Arctic Stratospheric Experiment to investigate processes important in the formation and growth of polar stratospheric cloud (PSC) particles. It is suggested on the basis of comparisons of the observations with expected sulfuric acid droplet deliquescence that in the Arctic a major fraction of the sulfuric acid droplets remain liquid until temperatures at least as low as 193 K. It is proposed that homogeneous freezing of the sulfuric acid droplets might occur near 190 K and might play a role in the formation of PSCs.

Description: The paper reports simultaneous measurements of the stratospheric burdens of H2O, HDO, OCS, CO2, O3, N2O, CO, CH4, CF2Cl2, CFCl3, CHF2Cl, C2H6, HCN, NO, NO2, HNO3, ClNO3, HOCl, HCl, and HF made by the JPL MkIV interferometer on board the NASA DC-8 aircraft during January and early February 1989 as part of the Airborne Arctic Stratosphere Experiment. Data were obtained on 11 flights at altitudes of up to 12 km over a geographic region covering the NE Atlantic Ocean, Iceland, and Greenland. Analyses of the chemically active gases reveal highly perturbed conditions within the vortex. The ClNO3 abundance was chemically enhanced near the edge of the vortex but was then depleted inside. NO2 was severely depleted inside the vortex. In contrast to Antarctica, H2O and HNO3 were both more abundant inside the vortex than outside. It is suggested that although the Arctic vortex did not get cold enough to produce any dehydration, or as vertically extensive denitrification as occurred in Antarctica, nevertheless, enough heterogeneous chemistry occurred to convert over 90 percent of the inorganic chlorine to active forms in the 14- to 27-km altitude range by early February 1989.

Description: Three-dimensional model simulations are used to describe the January 31, 1989 ozone minihole over Stavanger, Norway. This minihole is typical of many transient events in the lower stratosphere that arise because of cyclonic-scale disturbances in the troposphere. Although the ozone reduction is a short-lived reversible dynamical event, through heterogeneous chemical processes there can be a significant transfer of chlorine from reservoir molecules to active radicals. This chemically perturbed air is defined as processed air, and it is found that a single event can produce enough processed air to reduce the HCl in the entire polar vortex. Chemical processing on clouds associated with transient events is shown to be a major source of processed air in the polar vortex in December before background temperatures are cold enough for more uniform heterogeneous conversion.

Description: The hypothesis of Thorne (1977, 1980) and Baker et al. (1986, 1987) that the precipitation of energetic electrons is modifying the high-latitude ozone distribution in the Southern Hemisphere is tested by comparing electron density data from a ground-based partial reflection sounder with simultaneous satellite data on ozone mixing ratios taken at the 40 to 50 km altitude. The results do not support the theory that large electron densities coincide with ozone destruction. There is no evidence, for instance, that the January 15, 1984 ionization event had an associated ozone loss. Further experiments for investigating the relationship between the precipitating electrons and ozone depletion are suggested.

Description: The focus of this study is to write in terms of reported values the standard theoretical equation describing the earth's wobble, namely, the linearized conservation of angular momentum equation known as the Liouville equation. A relation between the locations of the rotation pole and the celestial ephemeris pole is first obtained to rewrite this equation in terms of the location of the reported pole. This is achieved in the time domain by considering the properties of the time-dependent transformation matrix that relates components of a position vector in the rotating, body-fixed frame to its components in the celestial, space-fixed frame.

Description: In the last three years, the European Geodetic Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) Network has grown to a total of six fixed antennas placed in Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden, all equipped with the standard geodetic VLBI instrumentation and data recording systems. During this period of time, several experiments have been carried out using this interferometer providing data of very high quality due to the excellent sensitivity and performance of the European stations. The purpose of this paper is to study the consistency of the VLBI geodetic results on the European baselines with respect to the different degrees of freedom in the analysis procedure. Used to complete this study were both real and simulated data sets, two different software packages (OCCAM 3.0 and CALC 7.4/SOLVE), and a variety of data analysis strategies.

Description: The vertical profiles of ClO, HCl, HO2, and O3 were determined from thermal emission measurements by a balloon-borne spectrometer operating near 640 GHz. Results are in broad agreement with previous measurements and models, but differ significantly with model photochemistry for the ratio of ClO to HCl.

Description: Stratospheric aerosol from Mount Pinatubo heated the tropical lower stratosphere by about 0.3 K/day mainly due to absorption of terrestrial infrared radiation. This heating was dissipated by: (1) an observed increase in stratospheric temperatures, which enhanced the radiation cooling; (2) additional mean upward motion, observed for the aerosol cloud, which led to adiabatic cooling; and (3) reductions in ozone concentrations resulting from enhanced upward motions. Each of these processes operated on a different time scale: maximum temperatures were observed after about 90 days; maximum ozone losses of about -1.5 ppm occurred after 140 days when the enhanced vertical velocities effectively lifted the ozone profile by about 2 km. We believe this shows that ozone plays an important role in buffering vertical motion in the tropical lower stratosphere, and hence the residual Brewer Dobson circulation of the whole stratosphere.

Description: We present AMPTE UKS data from a well-studied magnetospheric flux transfer event, showing detailed ion phase-space distributions for each region of this layered event. We show that the perpendicular temperature anisotropy maximizes at the center of the event. This is inconsistent with recent suggestions that FTE signatures may result from the spacecraft moving into and then out of the magnetosheath via the plasma depletion layer. We present an explanation for the temperature anisotropy structure in terms of a reconnection model.

Description: Data from the NOAA-9 satellite on cloud amount and cloud upper boundary temperature, data from surface weather stations, and results of aerological sounding of the atmosphere are used to calculate the vertical profiles of upward, downward, and effective fluxes of longwave radiation. A comparison of satellite and surface data on cloud amount and underlying surface temperature is presented.

Description: Two comments on a work by Murthy (1991) concerning the abundances of siderophile elements in the earth's mantle are presented. In the first comment it is asserted that the basis of Murthy's extrapolation is the assumption that the Gibbs free energy change for the partitioning reaction is independent of temperature, and as this is generally not a valid assumption thermodynamically, and as this is contradicted by most experimental data, the issue of mantle siderophile elements remains unresolved. In the second comment it is asserted that the extrapolation method used by Murthy does not appear to be valid thermodynamically, and that an extrapolation based on generally accepted thermodynamic assumptions yields different results. In a reply, Murthy takes issue with the comments.

Description: Small areas of sharply reduced ozone density appear frequently in the maps produced from polar region total ozone mapping spectrometer (TOMS) data. These mini-holes are of the order of 1000 km in extent with a lifetime of a few days. On the basis of measurements from ground-based instruments, balloon-borne ozonesondes, and simultaneous measurements of aerosol and ozone concentrations during aircraft flights in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, the appearance of polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) are frequently associated with false reductions in ozone derived from the TOMS albedo data. By combining radiative transfer calculations with the observed PSC and ozone data, it is shown that PSCs located near or above the ozone density maximum (with optical thickness greater than 0.1) can explain most of the differences between TOMS ozone data and ground or in situ ozone measurements. Several examples of real and false TOMS mini-hole phenomenon are investigated using data from the 1989 Airborne Arctic Stratospheric Expedition (AASE) and from balloon flights over Norway and Sweden.

Description: SAGE II multiwavelength aerosol extinction measurements are used to estimate mass- and extinction-to-backscatter conversion parameters. The basis of the analysis is the principal component analysis of the SAGE II extinction kernels to estimate both total aerosol mass and aerosol backscatter at a variety of wavelengths. Comparisons of coincident SAGE II extinction profiles with 0.694-micron aerosol backscatter profiles demonstrate the validity of the method.

Description: Changes in the earth's climate are induced by variations in the earth's orbital parameters which modulate the seasonal distribution of solar radiation. Periodicities in the geological climate record with cycles of 100, 41, and 23 kyr have been linked with changes in obliquity, eccentricity, and precession of the equinoxes. The effect of variations of eccentricity during a 100 kyr period is weak relative to the signals from obliquity and precession variations and it may therefore be expected that the 100 kyr signal in the climate record would be of low intensity. However, this signal dominates the climate record and internal nonlinear processes within the climate system have previously been proposed to account for this fact. The author shows that variations in the frequency of the obliquity cycle can give rise to strong 100-kyr forcing of climate.

Description: Measurements of total ozone at Macquarie Island (55 deg S, 159 deg E) reveal statistically significant reductions of approximately twelve percent during July to September when comparing the mean levels for 1987-90 with those in the seventies. In order to investigate the possibility that these ozone changes may not be a result of dynamic variability of the stratosphere, a simple linear model of ozone was created from statistical analysis of tropopause height and isentropic transient eddy heat flux, which were assumed representative of the dominant dynamic influences. Comparison of measured and modeled ozone indicates that the recent downward trend in ozone at Macquarie Island is not related to stratospheric dynamic variability and therefore suggests another mechanism, possibly changes in photochemical destruction of ozone.

Description: An analysis, based on the principles of stress balance in a 1-dimensional current sheet is presented, which considers the problem of closed magnetic flux transport into the deep tail by a 'viscous'-like interaction between the solar wind and the magnetosphere. The analysis is illustrated with an example of ISEE-3 data showing strong tailward plasma sheet flows on apparently closed field lines in the deep tail. Apart from narrow regions adjacent to the magnetopause, these flows are not driven by the scattering of magnetosheath plasma into the magnetosphere. The fraction of the magnetosheath momentum flux needed to be anomalously transferred into the plasma sheet to drive the flows is estimated. In the example this is 6 percent. No previously suggested mechanism (e.g., the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability) has been shown capable of providing anomalous momentum transport of this magnitude. The current understanding of the 'viscous' interaction between the solar wind and magnetosphere is thus insufficient to explain these observations.

Description: Simulation multiangle imagery have been used to investigate the capabilities of a novel method for retrieval of atmospheric aerosol optical properties over land; this method employs spatial contrasts within the imagery and compares the spatial Fourier transforms of the multiangle images at zero and nonzero spatial frequencies. While requiring the definition of a relationship between the angular variation of the Fourier transform of the intrinsic surface angular reflectance at the zero and nonzero frequencies, the method assumes no a priori knowledge about aerosols or surface characteristics. Sensitivities to various aerosol properties are assessed.

Description: Data from a worldwide Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking experiment have been used to determine variations in earth rotation (UT1-UTC) over a time period of three weeks. Kalman filtering and smoothing enabled changes in UT1-UTC over intervals of 2 to 24 hrs to be detected with the GPS data. Internal consistency checks and comparisons with other solutions from very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) and satellite laser ranging (SLR) indicate that the GPS UT1-UTC estimates are accurate to about 2 cm. Comparison of GPS-estimated variations in UT1-UTC with 2-hr time resolution over 4 days with predicted variations computed from diurnal and semidiurnal oceanic tidal contributions strongly suggests that the observed periodic sub-daily variations of about 0.1 msec are largely of tidal origin.

Description: Recent results indicate that the intense southward interplanetary magnetic fields (IMFs) responsible for great storms can reside in the postshock plasma preceding the driver gas of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) as well as in the driver gas itself. It is proposed here that strong southward fields in the postshock flow result from a major increase in the Russell-McPherron polarity effect through a systematic pattern of compression and draping within the ecliptic plane. Differential compression at the shock increases the Parker spiral angle and, consequently, the azimuthal field component that projects as a southward component onto earth's dipole axis. The resulting prediction is that southward fields in the postshock plasma maximize at the spring (fall) equinox in CMEs emerging from toward (away) sectors. This pattern produces a strong semiannual variation in postshock IMF orientation and may account at least in part for the observed semiannual variation of the occurrence of great geomagnetic storms.

Description: Spatial variations of density and temperature along a magnetic field line are evaluated for a plasma undergoing adiabatic motion in a rotating magnetosphere. The effects of centrifugal and gravitational forces are accounted for, as is anisotropy in the pitch angle distribution functions of individual species. A polarization electric field is invoked to eliminate the net electric charge density resulting from the aforementioned mass dependent forces and different anisotropies. The position of maximum density in a two-component, electron-ion plasma is determined both in the absence and in the presence of the polarization effect and compared. A scale height, generalized to include anisotropies, is derived for the density fall-off. The polarization electric field is also included in the parallel guiding center equation; equilibrium points are determined and compared in both individual and average senses with the position of density maximum. Finally a transverse (to magnetic field lines) electric component is deduced as a consequence of dissimilar charge neutralization on adjacent field lines. The E x B velocity resultant from such a 'fringing' electric field is calculated and compared with the magnitude of other drifts.

Description: The relative frequency of observation of the magnetosheath and magnetotail in the region where a nominal magnetotail is expected is determined on the basis of ISEE-3 magnetic field and electron plasma data. These observations are compared with how frequently a tail of a given radius would be expected to be seen, assuming typical variations in the direction of the solar wind flow relative to the radial. Observations match expectations if the average radius consistent with an open magnetotail where field lines are lost both through the magnetopause and also by closing along the equatorial current sheet. This relatively small radius is consistent with an open magnetotail where field lines are lost both through the magnetopause and also by closing across the equatorial current sheet. The average solar magnetospheric Bz component of the field in the distant plasma sheet is 0.6 nT during quiet times but zero during disturbed times, which suggests that when the polar cap becomes smaller during quiet times, many of the field lines that previously formed the distant tail lobes are converted into closed field lines that cross the equatorial plane earthward of 240 RE.

Description: A dual-polarization lidar aboard the NASA Electra aircraft was used in July 1991 to survey the stratospheric plume from the recent Mt. Pinatubo eruption. Both depolarizing and non-depolarizing volcanic layers were observed, ranging from 17 to 26 km in altitude. Differences in the depolarization signatures of the layers indicates differences in the composition or physical state of the particles in the layers.

Description: A dual-polarization lidar aboard the NASA Electra aircraft was used in July 1991 to survey the stratospheric plume from the recent Mt. Pinatubo eruption. Many distinct layers were observed, ranging from 17 to 26 km in altitude. Peak scattering ratios of as high as 80 at 532 nm were recorded. Total particle mass of the plume 27 days after the eruption is estimated from these measurements to be on the order of 8 megatonnes, with perhaps half the original SO2 converted to aerosol at that point.

Description: Differential SO2 column measurements of the Mt. Pinatubo volcanic plume were made from a NASA Electra aircraft flying in the Caribbean in July, 1991. The mean column content of the volcanic plume in the Caribbean was 25 micro-atm m (2.5 Dobson units) with periods of over 100 micro-atm m observed. The data indicate that an aerosol absorption or scattering effect occurs for long slant paths (low sun-elevation angles) and that 41 micro-atm m (an average obtained for 1-2 airmasses) is more representative of a true column average. Dispersion of the initial cloud from Mt. Pinatubo and a one-month SO2-to-sulfate conversion-time constant are in good agreement with the column contents found here.

Description: Airborne measurements are examined of spectral optical depths, radiative fluxes, and scattered radiation fields during the NASA Caribbean mission (July 7-14, 1991) to characterize the Pinatubo volcanic cloud. The latitudinal and spectral dependence are reported of the volcanic cloud's optical depth. From these measurements moments of the particle-size distribution are determined. The change in planetary albedo induced by the volcanic cloud is calculated for the range of measured optical depths with the objective of assessing the impact on the solar radiation budget. Mid-visible optical depths higher than 0.4 were observed, placing the Pinatubo stratospheric cloud among the thickest ever measured. The latitudinal distribution of extinction shows that by July 7, 1991 the volcanic cloud had extended to 30 deg N. The effective particle radius was determined to be between 0.18 and 0.35 micron with a corresponding columnar mass loading between 35 and 80 mag/sq m.

Description: An overview is given of the techniques employed to evaluate the early effects of the volcanic eruption on the stratosphere and climate, and data are given on the initial eruption yield. Global satellite measurements were taken by TOMS, SAGE II, AVHRR, and other devices, and the initial results indicate an eruption yield of 20 megatons of SO2 and 20-30 megatons of H2SO4/H2O aerosol mass. The predicted effects of the eruption - accelerated global ozone depletion and surface cooling - can be compared to meteorological data to test the validity of present climate models based on these data.

Description: SAGE II satellite measurements of the Mt. Pinatubo eruption cloud in the stratosphere during June, July, and early August 1991 show that aerosols in the tropics reached as high as 29 km altitude with most of the cloud between 20 and 25 km. The most optically thick portions of the cloud covered latitudes from 10 deg S to 30 deg N during the early part of this period. By late July, high stratospheric optical depths were observed to at least 70 deg N, with the high values north of about 30 deg N from layers below 20 km. High pressure systems in both hemispheres were observed to be correlated with the movement of volcanic material at 21 km into the westerly jet stream at high southern latitudes and similarly to high northern latitudes at 16 km. By August, the entire Southern Hemisphere had experienced a 10-fold increase in optical depth relative to early July due to layers above 20 km. Initial mass calculations using SAGE II data place the aerosol produced from this eruption at 20 to 30 megatons, well above the 12 megatons produced by El Chichon.

Description: The explosive June 1991 eruptions of Mount Pinatubo produced the largest sulfur dioxide cloud detected by the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) during its 13 years of operation: approximately 20 million tons of SO2, predominantly from the cataclysmic June 15th eruption. The SO2 cloud observed by the TOMS encircled the earth in about 22 days (about 21 m/s); however, during the first three days the leading edge of the SO2 cloud moved with a speed that averaged about 35 m/s. Compared to the 1982 El Chichon eruptions, Pinatubo outgassed nearly three times the amount of SO2 during its explosive phases. The main cloud straddled the equator within the first two weeks of eruption, whereas the El Chichon cloud remained primarily in the Northern Hemisphere. The measurements indicate that Mount Pinatubo has produced a much larger and perhaps longer-lasting SO2 cloud; thus, climatic responses to the Pinatubo eruption can exceed those of El Chichon.

Description: Baseline lengths and geocentric radii have been determined from GPS data without the use of fiducial sites. Data from the first GPS experiment for the IERS and Geodynamics (GIG '91) have been analyzed with a no-fiducial strategy. A baseline length daily repeatability of 2 mm + 4 parts per billion was obtained for baselines in the Northern Hemisphere. Comparison of baseline lengths from GPS and the global VLBI solution GLB659 (Caprette et al. 1990) show rms agreement of 2.1 parts per billion. The geocentric radius mean daily repeatability for all sites was 15 cm. Comparison of geocentric radii from GPS and SV5 (Murray et al. 1990) show rms agreement of 3.8 cm. Given n globally distributed stations, the n(n - 1)/2 baseline lengths and n geocentric radii uniquely define a rigid closed polyhedron with a well-defined center of mass. Geodetic information can be obtained by examining the structure of the polyhedron and its change with time.

Description: The interaction between the Space Shuttle exhaust and the ambient atmosphere was studied using spectra in the wavelength region near 630 nm, obtained from the Air Force Maui Optical Station were the temporal, spatial, and spectral distribution of the emission in this region was recorded. The results show that, when the Space Shuttle exhaust gases interact with the atmosphere in the ram direction, an intense long-lasting emission is generated at 630 nm due to O(1D - 3P). A substantial amount of O(1D) is swept back onto the orbiter. Two processes responsible for the formation of O(1D) are proposed.

Description: Observations from magnetic field and plasma experiments on ISEE 3 are used to identify and to analyze 16 crossings of the distant magnetotail neutral sheet. Four methods of analyses have been employed to measure the extent of the magnetotail twisting, which is found to be much greater than what was previously observed or, the theoretically inferred twist. A twist of more than 90 deg has frequently been observed on both open and closed magnetic field lines. In addition, the location of the magnetic neutral line of the magnetotail has been found to move over the distance interval of 115 to 220 Earth radii. Some features of these results suggest that a modification of the present solar wind-geomagnetic field interaction model may be needed.

Description: Line intensities, air- and self-broadening parameters have been measured for selected lines in the nu4 (1243/cm) and nu6 (774/cm) bands of carbonyl fluoride at 296 and 215 K using a tunable diode-laser spectrometer. Measured line intensities are in good agreement +/- 6 percent with recently reported values derived from rotational analyses of the nu4 and nu6 bands. The measured average air-broadening coefficient at 296 K also agrees well (+/- 5 percent) with N2-broadening coefficients determined from microwave studies, while the average self-broadening coefficient reported here is smaller than a previously reported value by 45 percent.

Description: The hypothesis that present-day deformation within the southern Kuril forearc is driven by oblique subduction of the Pacific plate is tested using 397 horizontal slip directions derived from shallow-thrust earthquakes from the Kuril and Japan trenches for the period 1963-1991. A simple two-plate model fits the 397 slip vectors significantly worse than a model that permits strike-slip motion of the southern Kuril forearc relative to the overlying plate. Weighted, mean slip directions along the southern Kuril trench are systematically rotated toward the direction orthogonal to the trench, which implies that the net convergence is partitioned into less oblique subduction and trench-parallel displacement of the southern Kuril forearc. The angular discrepancy between the observed slip direction and the direction predicted by the NUVEL-1 Pacific-North America Euler vector implies that the southern Kuril forearc translates 6-11 mm/yr to the southwest relative to the overlying North American plate. These results are consistent with geologically, geodetically, and seismologically observed convergence at the leading edge of the forearc sliver in southern Kokkaido and with previously inferred extension at the trailing edge of the sliver, which is located at the Bussol Strait at 46 deg N.

Description: Approximately 400 globally distributed xenolith samples are examined to determine whether continental regions are characterized by relatively magnetic crusts lying on relatively nonmagnetic mantles. Samples of mantle peridotites and mafic granulites by Wasilewski et al. (1979) are supplemented by samples of mantle and crustal xenoliths from Asia, North America, Africa, and Antarctica. The data indicate that a magnetic crustal layer overlies a nonmagnetic mantle much in the same manner as proposed by Jarchow and Thompson (1989). Nonmagnetic chrome spinels and magnesian ilmenites make up the ultramafic upper-mantle xenolith suite. Mafic rocks are the typically magnetic components of the crust, and induced magnetizations can account for long-wavelength magnetic anomalies measured remotely by aircraft and spacecraft.

Description: The role played by time-dependent mantle convection on exciting long-term polar motions is examined by means of a viscous model. For sufficiently low effective viscosity, polar-wander speeds of 0(1 deg/Myr) would require contributions from the off-diagonal elements of the inertia tensor, with magnitudes around 100,000 times smaller than those found in viscoelastic models used for postglacial rebound. Contributions from the large-scale mantle flow to the angular momentum vector can be comparable to those due to changes in moment of inertia tensor for nonlinear rheology or for young planet. The relative roles of the two contributions depend on the nonlinear rheology of the mantle and its convective vigor.

Description: In situ airborne flux values for O3, CO, an CH4 over selected wetlands of Alaska are reported, and airborne CH4 flux measurements are presented for the first time. The source/sink distribution over the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) is qualitatively correlated with surface vegetation type. The CH4 source strength over the YKD ranged from 25 to 85 mg/sq m/d. A spatially averaged, seasonally adjusted source strength of 51 mg/sq m/d was established for the YKD. Indirect CH4 flux estimates obtained over the Alaskan North Slope indicate a much lower source strength. The global CH4 emission from tundra are estimated to be 44 Tg/a at an upper limit. Airborne CO flux measurements over the YKD indicate low negative flux values over the coastal areas, while some positive fluxes were observed in the inland sparsely forested regions. An inspection of the cospectrum of CO with vertical velocity for sample runs in coastal areas indicate the possibility of in situ photochemical destruction/production of CO.

Description: Characteristics of the wave electric fields in the frequency range 3 to 22 mHz in the equatorial plane (on GEOS 2) during four substorms were investigated. During intervals of about ten min duration after the substorm onset, large electric fields appear at synchronous orbit. In particular, 3 to 4 spectral peaks in the wave electric field data can be discerned. The dominant models occur at approximately 6 and approximately 10 mHz. Additional peaks exist around 15 and 20 mHz. Although the sense of polarization of these modes varies, these modes tend to have right handed polarization with a typical ellipticity of 0.2. The major axis usually points to the east, lying at an angle of 0 to 50 deg with the azimuthal direction. Mapped into the ionosphere, this corresponds to a north-west orientation. New wave activity appears some 30 to 40 min after the onset lasting about 10 min. The wave properties of these events are relatively close to those events occurring near the substorm onset, except for the orientation angle of the major axis which is now 140 to 180 deg. Because the magnetometer data is not available, the generation mechanism of the waves studied is hard to identify. There is some evidence that these waves are a superposition of compressional waves, produced by the collapse of the magnetotail, and the field line resonances, triggered by these compressional waves.

Description: A study discussing and investigating the role of inductive electric fields in substorm development is presented. It is common to use the scalar potential phi to calculate the electrostatic field E(sup ES)-(inverted Delta)(phi). However, vector potential A has not been extensively used to analyze results by the relation for the inductive electric field E(sup IND)-delta A/delta t. Because of the weak dependence in distance (1/r) these potentials show the effect of distant sources, unlike MHD (Magnetohydrodynamic) theory which is strictly local. The two can be separated by the choice of the Coulomb (transverse) gauge. It is proper to consider that the plasma polarizes to counteract the activation of the inductive electric field; this is a matter of cause and effect. However, such polarization produces a curl free electrostatic field and thus cannot alter the electromotive force due to induction. This idea has some interesting consequences for plasma physics, including violations of MHD theory, creation of the substorm current diversion, and a fresh look at dayside merging via plasma transfer events.

Description: The excitation and decay of flows in the magnetosphere-ionosphere system which are caused by magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause and in the geomagnetic tail are applied. Following an outline of the theoretical framework recently introduced by Cowley and Lockwood, their ideas are applied to the discussion of the time dependent flows generated by both impulsive and quasicontinuous reconnection.

Description: An investigation of the temporal sequence of substorm phenomena based on three dimensional MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) simulations of magnetic reconnection and plasmoid formation is presented. The investigation utilizes a spatially localized resistivity model which leads to a significantly faster evolution than found in previous investigations. The analysis of the results concentrates on substorm features that have received considerable attention in the past. The formation of magnetic neutral lines, the occurrence of fast flows directed both earthward and tailward, and the magnetic field changes leading to the formation of the substorm current wedge, and to the depolarization of the magnetic field earthward of the reconnection region and its dependence on the spatial distribution of resistivity, are discussed. These phenomena are seen as an integral part of the nonlinear evolution of the three dimensional tearing instability.

Description: DC electric field variations in a synchronous orbit (GEOS 2) during four substorms in the time sector 19 to 01 LT were investigated. Simultaneously, the imaging photometer on board DE 1 provided auroral images that are also utilized. Substorm onset is defined here as a sudden appearance of large electric fields. During the growth phase, the orientation of the electric field begins to oscillate some 30 min prior to onset. About 10 min before the onset GEOS 2 starts moving into a more tenuous plasma, probably due to a thinning of the current sheet. The onset is followed by a period of 10 to 15 min during which large electric fields occur. This interval can be divided into two intervals. During the first interval, which lasts 4 to 8 min, very large fields of 8 to 20 mV/m are observed, while the second interval contains relatively large fields (2 to 5 mV/m). A few min after the onset, the spacecraft returns to a plasma region of higher electron fluxes which are usually larger than before substorm. Some 30 min after onset, enhanced activity, lasting about 10 min, appears in the electric field. One of the events selected offers a good opportunity to study the formation and development of the Westward Traveling Surge (WST). During the traversal of the leading edge of the WTS (approximately 8 min) a stable wave mode at 5.7 mHz is detected.

Description: The temporal and spatial scale of the onset of two substorm events is investigated using high resolution energetic particle and magnetic field data at synchronous orbit plus auroral and magnetic field data simultaneously taken from the ground based instrumentation. During both intervals the major expansion onset had precursor localized expansions without significant negative bay enhancement ('pseudobreakups'). Typical magnetospheric onset signatures such as tail current diversion, dipolarization, and injection were observed associated with some of the pseudobreakups. The major expansion, on the other hand, consisted of a number of rather localized injections and expansions, each of which had times scales of 5 to approximately 10 minutes, a comparable time scale to that of pseudobreakups. The number of occurrences, as well as the scale size of the magnetospheric source region, would constitute the major difference between pseudobreakup and the global expansion onset.

Description: Model calculations that investigate the possible climatic effects of the Toba volcanic cloud are presented. The increase in atmospheric opacity might have produced a 'volcanic winter', followed by a few years with maximum estimated annual hemispheric surface-temperature decreases of 3-5 C. The eruption occurred during the stage 5a-4 transition of the oxygen isotope record, a time of rapid ice growth and falling sea level. It is suggested that the Toba eruption may have greatly accelerated the shift to glacial conditions that was already under way, by inducing perennial snow cover and increased sea-ice extent at sensitive northern latitudes. As the onset of climate change may have helped to trigger the eruption itself, it is proposed that the Toba event may exemplify a more general climate-volcano feedback mechanism.

Description: Falling sphere measurements were part of a study to investigate the relationship between Noctilucent Clouds and Polar Mesospheric Summer Echoes within the context of interactions between the ionized and the neutral atmosphere. During this investigation there was one measurement of a very low mesopause temperature. This temperature is believed to be the lowest value ever observed in the terrestrial environment. The reasons why this cold mesopause measurement is considered to be valid are presented.

Description: Raman lidar measurements over southeastern Kansas of stratospheric aerosols produced by the June 1991 eruptions of Mt. Pinatubo were made on 10 nights during November and December 1991. Both aerosol backscattering and extinction profiles were derived simultaneously from the lidar data since this system detects Raman scattering from nitrogen and oxygen as well as the backscattered light from aerosols and molecules. Aerosols scattering ratios greater than 3(at 351 nm) were measured on several nights. Peak aerosol concentrations were located between 19-22 km and varied significantly from night to night. Aerosol extinction/backscatter ratios computed from the lidar data and averaged over the altitude region of enhanced aerosol scattering between 15-25 km varied between 18-28 sr. Mie computations show these values to be consistent with scattering by aerosol particles with mode radii between 0.3 to 0.5 micron and that the ratios would increase to 40-65 sr at 694 nm. Aerosol optical thicknesses derived from the lidar extinction measurements at 351 nm varied between 0.04 and 0.06.

Description: The 1991 Antarctic springtime ozone decline, as measured by the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS), was similar to those of earlier deep ozone hole years, 1987, 1989, and 1990. The minimum total ozone value was recorded on October 5, 1991 at 108 Dobson units near the South Pole. This was 8 DU lower than in any of the earlier years. Four of the last five years have exhibited an extensive, deep ozone hole. The area of the hole was about the same as in 1987, 1989, and 1990. The recovery of the low total ozone values occurred in mid-November as the polar vortex broke up.

Description: Recent advances in magnetospheric storm and substorm research is reviewed, with emphasis on how the large southward fields and high velocities produced in the solar wind influence the magnetosphere and cause the enhanced transfer of energy, momentum, and mass to the magnetosphere. Overwhelming evidence indicates that the southward interplanetary magnetic field is the primary controlling factor in the generation of substorms. The immediate cause of the expansion phase onset is controversial, but the suddenness of the onset is suggestive of an instability that disrupts the cross-tail currents. Measurements increasingly suggest the region of 7-10 R sub E near midnight as the likely point of origin, but it is not clear that the long-popular tearing mode can go unstable this close to the earth, where it may be stabilized by a small northward field component.

Description: The ERBE algorithm is applied to the Nimbus-7 earth radiation budget (ERB) scanner data for June 1979 to analyze the performance of an inversion method in deriving top-of-atmosphere albedos and longwave radiative fluxes. The performance is assessed by comparing ERBE algorithm results with appropriate results derived using the sorting-by-angular-bins (SAB) method, the ERB MATRIX algorithm, and the 'new-cloud ERB' (NCLE) algorithm. Comparisons are made for top-of-atmosphere albedos, longwave fluxes, viewing zenith-angle dependence of derived albedos and longwave fluxes, and cloud fractional coverage. Using the SAB method as a reference, the rms accuracy of monthly average ERBE-derived results are estimated to be 0.0165 (5.6 W/sq m) for albedos (shortwave fluxes) and 3.0 W/sq m for longwave fluxes. The ERBE-derived results were found to depend systematically on the viewing zenith angle, varying from near nadir to near the limb by about 10 percent for albedos and by 6-7 percent for longwave fluxes. Analyses indicated that the ERBE angular models are the most likely source of the systematic angular dependences. Comparison of the ERBE-derived cloud fractions, based on a maximum-likelihood estimation method, with results from the NCLE showed agreement within about 10 percent.

Description: It has been found that powerful cyclones are proceeded, accompanied and followed by narrow band electromagnetic emission with central frequency around 2 Hz. It is shown that the signal from this emission is unique and clearly distinguishable from known types of magnetic pulsations, spectra of local thunderstorms, and signals from industrial sources. This emission was first observed during an unusually powerful cyclone with tornadoes in the western European part of the Soviet Union, which passed by the observatory of Borok from south to north-east. The emission has been confirmed by analysis of similar events in Antarctica. The phenomenon described presents a new aspect of interactions of processes in the lower atmosphere and the ionosphere.

Description: Based on modeling some interactions between the middle atmosphere and thermosphere are presented. The interactions studied include the thermospheric circulations driven by radiative and auroral heating affecting the O concentration and temperature of the upper mesosphere through the exchange of chemical energy. Considering Kellog's mechanism, an interaction between the mesosphere and thermosphere that is driven by Joule heating is discussed.

Description: Empirical model descriptions of the response of the neutral thermosphere to magnetic activity have become increasingly sophisticated over the last two decades. The latest CIRA model (MSIS-86) includes a dependence of the thermospheric response to magnetic activity on altitude, latitude, local time, season, longitude, UT, and time history of magnetic activity. A primary assumption is that density changes are directly related to the measured magnetic activity and the goal is for the model to be representative of the typical or average response for any given level of magnetic activity under specified ancillary conditions. Unfortunately, available measurements for the larger storms are too sparse to give good averages and storm response may not be uniquely represented by current magnetic indices. Point by point comparisons with the MSIS-86 model have standard deviations of 20 percent for 0 and 30 percent for N2 and He at high latitudes during storm conditions.

Description: Two independent sets of data, one of aerosols from an airborne lidar system, and one of ozone from ozonesonde measurements indicate that significant ozone decreases may have happened as a result of the injection of debris by the Mt. Pinatubo volcano in June 1991. The amount of this reduction maximizes at 24-25 km, near the peak of the aerosol distribution, though a deficit is seen throughout the lower stratosphere between 19 and 28 km. The greatest differences observed prior and subsequent to the eruptions at these altitudes is 18-20 percent.