Sensitivity study for ICON tidal analysis

Abstract

Retrieval of the properties of the middle and upper atmosphere can be performed using several different interferometric and photometric methods. The emission-shape and Doppler shift of both atomic and molecular emissions can be observed from the ground and space to provide temperature and bulk velocity. These instantaneous measurements can be combined over successive times/locations along an orbit track, or successive universal/local times from a ground station to quantify the motion and temperature of the atmosphere needed to identify atmospheric tides. In this report, we explore how different combinations of space-based wind and temperature measurements affect the retrieval of atmospheric tides, a ubiquitous property of planetary atmospheres. We explore several scenarios informed by the use of a tidally forced atmospheric circulation model, an empirically based emissions reference, and a low-earth orbit satellite observation geometry based on the ICON mission design. This capability provides a necessary tool for design of an optimal mission concept for retrieval of atmospheric tides from ICON remote-sensing observations. Here it is used to investigate scenarios of limited data availability and the effects of rapid changes in the total wave spectrum on the retrieval of the correct tidal spectrum. An approach such as that described here could be used in the design of future missions, such as the NASA DYNAMIC mission (National Research Council, Solar and space physics: a science for a technological society, 2013).