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Abstract Meteor radio afterglows (MRAs) and optical persistent trains (PTs) are two types of long‐lived phenomena which are occasionally observed following the occurrence of a meteor. Both phenomena are thought to be produced by intrinsic emission mechanisms; PTs have been associated with chemiluminescent reactions between meteoric metals and atmospheric ozone whereas MRA emission arises due to radiation emitted by processes in the meteor's plasma trail. Previous research has identified an association between these phenomena, and proposed a mechanism by which the reactions responsible for PTs could also fuel MRAs. In this work, we investigate said connection using a substantially larger catalog containing hundreds of examples of each phenomenon. Using meteor data from the Global Meteor Network (GMN), we performed a directed search in all‐sky radio images obtained by the Long Wavelength Array (LWA) radio telescope to identify meteors with MRAs. The resulting catalog spanned nearly 2 years and contained a total of 2,887 meteors, with 675 MRA events and 372 PTs. Statistical analyses suggest that the connection between the two phenomena is not as strong as previously supposed. Additionally, we show that the MRA occurrence rates do not have a strong seasonal dependence, meteoroid strength dependence, or preference between meteor showers and sporadics. Interestingly, we find that a meteor's entry angle appears to play a significant role in whether an MRA is observed.
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Seasonal and Local Time Variation in the Observed Peak of the Meteor Altitude Distributions by Meteor Radars
Abstract Meteoroids of sub‐milligram sizes burn up high in the Earth's atmosphere and cause streaks of plasma trails detectable by meteor radars. The altitude at which these trails, or meteors, form depends on a number of factors including atmospheric density and the astronomical source populations from which these meteoroids originate. A previous study has shown that the altitude of these meteors is affected by long‐term linear trends and the 11‐year solar cycle related to changes in our atmosphere. In this work, we examine how shorter diurnal and seasonal variations in the altitude distribution of meteors are dependent on the geographical location at which the measurements are performed. We use meteoroid altitude data from 18 independent meteor radar stations at a broad range of latitudes and investigate whether there are local time (LT) and seasonal variations in the altitude of the peak meteor height, defined as the majority detection altitude of all meteors within a certain period, which differ from those expected purely from the variation in the visibility of their astronomical source. We find a consistent LT and seasonal response for the Northern Hemisphere locations regardless of latitude. However, the Southern Hemisphere locations exhibit much greater LT and seasonal variation. In particular, we find a complex response in the four stations located within the Southern Andes region, which indicates that the strong dynamical atmospheric activity, such as the gravity waves prevalent here, disrupts, and masks the seasonality and dependence on the astronomical sources.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1828589
- PAR ID:
- 10575975
- Author(s) / Creator(s):
- ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more »
- Publisher / Repository:
- John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
- Volume:
- 129
- Issue:
- 21
- ISSN:
- 2169-897X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JD040978
