Articles | Volume 18, issue 22
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-6959-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-18-6959-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
24 Nov 2025
Research article |
| 24 Nov 2025
| 24 Nov 2025
Impact of lower atmospheric scattering on ground-based optical thermospheric wind observations with spatially uneven airglow
Xiaolong Wei
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
Guoying Jiang
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
School of Astronomy and Space Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
School of Astronomy and Space Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
Jiyao Xu
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
Weijun Liu
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
Tiancai Wang
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
Guangyi Zhu
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
Wei Yuan
State Key Laboratory of Solar Activity and Space Weather, National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
Hainan National Field Science Observation and Research Observatory for Space Weather, Hainan, 571734, China
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Short summary
Scattered airglow can bias thermospheric wind observations by ground-based interferometers, especially when brightness is spatially uneven due to auroras. We simulated lower atmospheric scattering during two mid-latitude auroral events and confirmed that scattering can lead to line-of-sight speed biases, thereby increasing the horizontal differences between opposite cardinal directions. This scattering impact needs to be carefully considered in thermospheric dynamics analysis.
Scattered airglow can bias thermospheric wind observations by ground-based interferometers,...
