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- ItemMass analysis of charged aerosol particles in NLC and PMSE during the ECOMA/MASS campaign(München : European Geopyhsical Union, 2009) Robertson, S.; Horányi, M.; Knappmiller, S.; Sternovsky, Z.; Holzworth, R.; Shimogawa, M.; Friedrich, M.; Torkar, K.; Gumbel, J.; Megner, L.; Baumgarten, G.; Latteck, R.; Rapp, M.; Hoppe, U.-P.; Hervig, M.E.MASS (Mesospheric Aerosol Sampling Spectrometer) is a multichannel mass spectrometer for charged aerosol particles, which was flown from the Andøya Rocket Range, Norway, through NLC and PMSE on 3 August 2007 and through PMSE on 6 August 2007. The eight-channel analyzers provided for the first time simultaneous measurements of the charge density residing on aerosol particles in four mass ranges, corresponding to ice particles with radii <0.5 nm (including ions), 0.5–1 nm, 1–2 nm, and >3 nm (approximately). Positive and negative particles were recorded on separate channels. Faraday rotation measurements provided electron density and a means of checking charge density measurements made by the spectrometer. Additional complementary measurements were made by rocket-borne dust impact detectors, electric field booms, a photometer and ground-based radar and lidar. The MASS data from the first flight showed negative charge number densities of 1500–3000 cm−3 for particles with radii >3 nm from 83–88 km approximately coincident with PMSE observed by the ALWIN radar and NLC observed by the ALOMAR lidar. For particles in the 1–2 nm range, number densities of positive and negative charge were similar in magnitude (~2000 cm−3) and for smaller particles, 0.5–1 nm in radius, positive charge was dominant. The occurrence of positive charge on the aerosol particles of the smallest size and predominately negative charge on the particles of largest size suggests that nucleation occurs on positive condensation nuclei and is followed by collection of negative charge during subsequent growth to larger size. Faraday rotation measurements show a bite-out in electron density that increases the time for positive aerosol particles to be neutralized and charged negatively. The larger particles (>3 nm) are observed throughout the NLC region, 83–88 km, and the smaller particles are observed primarily at the high end of the range, 86–88 km. The second flight into PMSE alone at 84–88 km, found only small number densities (~500 cm−3) of particles >3 nm in a narrow altitude range, 86.5–87.5 km. Both positive (~2000 cm−3) and negative (~4500 cm−3) particles with radii 1–2 nm were detected from 85–87.5 km.
- ItemLarge mesospheric ice particles at exceptionally high altitudes(München : European Geopyhsical Union, 2009) Megner, L.; Khaplanov, M.; Baumgarten, G.; Gumbel, J.; Stegman, J.; Strelnikov, B.; Robertson, S.We here report on the characteristics of exceptionally high Noctilucent clouds (NLC) that were detected with rocket photometers during the ECOMA/MASS campaign at Andøya, Norway 2007. The results from three separate flights are shown and discussed in connection to lidar measurements. Both the lidar measurements and the large difference between various rocket passages through the NLC show that the cloud layer was inhomogeneous on large scales. Two passages showed a particularly high, bright and vertically extended cloud, reaching to approximately 88 km. Long time series of lidar measurements show that NLC this high are very rare, only one NLC measurement out of thousand reaches above 87 km. The NLC is found to consist of three distinct layers. All three were bright enough to allow for particle size retrieval by phase function analysis, even though the lowest layer proved too horizontally inhomogeneous to obtain a trustworthy result. Large particles, corresponding to an effective radius of 50 nm, were observed both in the middle and top of the NLC. The present cloud does not comply with the conventional picture that NLC ice particles nucleate near the temperature minimum and grow to larger sizes as they sediment to lower altitudes. Strong up-welling, likely caused by gravity wave activity, is required to explain its characteristics.