Coupling of the Northern Polar Vortex to Mesospheric Temperatures during Sudden Stratospheric Warming

Abstract

In this study, we analyzed data from an Fourier Transform spectrometer (FTS) which has been operated in Kiruna, Sweden (67.90°N, 21.10°E) since 2001 to measure the OH nightglow emissions in near infrared. We also analyzed daily temperature data from Aura/MLS instrument and MERRA reanalysis during 2004 through 2011, in order to study the relationship between the variation of polar vortex in stratosphere and mesospheric temperature change at northern high latitude. Utilizing the multi-year data from FTS, Aura/MLS, and MERRA reanalysis, we investigated the height profiles of correlation coefficients between daily polar cap index (PCI) anomaly at 10 hPa, which represent the variability of polar vortex, and area-mean mesospheric temperature anomalies over 60N during northern winters for the period from 2004 to 2011