Earth - atmosphere

[mharratsc]

The *one* thing about this is- word from the guy who took the video states that the 'object' was spinning, and you can see that the contrail seems to be spiraling.

Not to mention- in some shots of the video, I would have to say that the front end of the plume seems to be rather incandescent... almost like a booster...

Personally, I think it was an unauthorized rocket launch of some kind- either a runaway model rocket or maybe a military one that got away from them and they didn't want to 'fess up to it.

[tolenio]

Hello,

We are approaching the 80-120 year solar minima. The last one occured in ~1906. The last peak of the cycle came ~1960.

Does the amount of plasma hitting the stratosphere affect how clear the stratosphere is?

http://www.spaceweather.com/

ALL-CLEAR IN THE STRATOSPHERE: Earth's stratosphere is as clear as it's been in more than 50 years. University of Colorado climate scientist Richard Keen knows this because he's been watching lunar eclipses. "Since 1996, lunar eclipses have been bright, which means the stratosphere is relatively clear of volcanic aerosols. This is the longest period with a clear stratosphere since before 1960." Consider the following comparison of a lunar eclipse observed in 1992 after the Philippine volcano Pinatubo spewed millions of tons of gas and ash into the atmosphere vs. an "all-clear" eclipse in 2003:Keen explains why lunar eclipses can be used to probe the stratosphere: "At the distance of the Moon, most of the light refracted into the umbra (Earth's shadow) passes through the stratosphere, which lies 10 to 30 miles above the ground. When the stratosphere is clear, the umbra (and therefore, the eclipsed Moon) is relatively bright. On the other hand, if the atmospheric lens that illuminates the Moon becomes dirty enough, light will be blocked and the eclipse will appear dark."

This is timely and important because the state of the stratosphere affects climate; a clear stratosphere "lets the sunshine in" to warm the Earth below. At a 2008 SORCE conference Keen reported that "The lunar eclipse record indicates a clear stratosphere over the past decade, and that this has contributed about 0.2 degrees to recent warming."

So does a less active sun have a clearing effect on the stratosphere, and an active sun keep the stratosphere dirtier?

Or is there simply less volcanic action under a minima sun?

Or both?

Thanks,
Tom

[solrey]

Hi Tom.

Solar activity in '92 was comparable to solar activity in '03 and both of those years were just a year or two after the respective peaks of solar maximum. The stratosphere was clear for the duration of the previous solar max, covering 2003, and has remained clear into the current solar minimum. The difference between the two lunar eclipses from '92 and '03 was the density of dust in the stratosphere, while other factors were nearly the same.

Think dusty plasma.

When the dust in space plasma is too dense we use infrared and radio telescopes to see beyond the dust in those particular wavelengths because as the density of the dust increases so does the absorption of visible light. Therefore, with a dusty atmosphere during a lunar eclipse, more light is absorbed by the stratosphere causing less light to reach the moon.


I hope everyone has clear skies to view this rare, winter solstice lunar eclipse.

The axis leanin' is the reason for the season.

cheers,
Tim

[solrey]

I should elaborate on the previous post. Volcanic ash consists of electrostatically charged micro-particles. The time that the ash remains suspended in the atmosphere is probably influenced by the time it takes the micro-particles to dissipate their charge. Is the rate of discharge/longevity of ash particles in the atmosphere related to solar activity? Probably, as that would have an influence on the ionosphere and therefore affect discharge activity between the ionosphere to clouds to ground with the ash caught in the middle. The correlation between volcanic activity and solar activity isn't necessarily in sync with solar min/max, though. An oft overlooked factor is electromagnetic induction as a product of the rate of change of the interplanetary magnetic field. When the rate of change is "slow", the induction is low, but when the rate of change is "fast", the induction is high. As the heliospheric current sheet sweeps past the Earth, in wave like fashion, the rate of change in the magnetic polarity on either side of the current sheet as it sweeps past is just as important as the amount of change. In terms of waves, as the wavy HCS sweeps past, a steeper slope equals more induction, a shallower slope equals less induction. The rate and amount of change in the IMF during the time between solar max and min may be even more influential geophysically than the conditions that occur in the middle of either max or min.

The minor changes in the IMF for the past couple of years have been relatively slow, overall solar activity remains low and during that time there hasn't been a significant amount of charged volcanic ash introduced into the atmosphere. I think we can expect a very "clear", spectacular eclipse tonight.

Clear skies to all who live where the eclipse can be seen.

cheers

[tolenio]

Hello,

I was speaking of the 80-120 year solar cycle, not the 11 year cycle.

If the 11 year cycle has an effect, the 80-120 year cycle should have a larger impact.

This is why they spoke about ~1960 which is when the last peak occurred in the 80-120 year cycle.

As we approach the 80-120 year solar minima the stratospere should become clearer and clearer overall.

As this image indicates we are approaching the 80-120 year minima now.
http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/1440 ... gramLG.jpg

Tom

[solrey]

Hi Tom. Right, you're talking about the Gleissberg cycle. I was just using recent examples of times of similar levels of solar activity that had different amounts of dust in the stratosphere, due to the eruption of Pinatubo in the earlier time period and a lack of major volcanic activity in the second time period.

What I'm trying to say is yes, solar activity would effect how long volcanic dust remains aloft in the stratosphere and also affects volcanic activity, with an emphasis on the transition periods. The stratosphere, where volcanic dust grains tend to hang out, is not ionized/conductive so the charged grains are immersed in an insulating medium. In the case of weak solar activity corresponding to weak discharge activity between the ionosphere and ground (TLE's: sprites, blue jets, et al.) the dust grains would tend to lose their charge slowly and remain suspended longer in a stratified layer (the stratosphere in this case) in the electric field between the ionosphere and ground. In the case of vigorous TLE's, the charged grains would lose their charge more rapidly and so remain suspended for less time.

It seems counterintuitive in a way. Stronger solar activity producing stronger ionospheric discharge would tend to clear the atmosphere by dissipating the charge in dust grains, while weaker solar activity would tend to allow more charged dust to retain their charge and remain suspended longer.

The transitions are an important factor as well, discussed in this paper on the Gleissberg cycle:

The Solar WOLF-GLEISSBERG Cycle and it's Influence on the Earth

It is the purpose of the present work, first to review and establish strong connections between Solar
(80-100) yr. Wolf-Gleissberg cycles, and various climatic criteria, as manifested both in contemporary
time series as well as periodicities. Secondly to review known climatic fluctuations and to show that
they are coincident with Wolf-Gleissberg cycles turning points and thus are stimulated by Solar
forcing possibly arising from magnetic changes in and in-between those cycles with the capacity of
backward and foreword forecast of various climatic fluctuations as manifested by droughts, abrupt rise
or fall of lakes or closed sea levels as well as global cooling or warming

Bold emphasis mine to highlight the importance in the rate of change of the magnetic field, which I've been emphasizing, regardless of which stage solar activity is at in relation to either long or short term cycles.

Krakatoa is a prime example, which is famous for the sulfur dioxide that remained suspended in the atmosphere, yet it occurred in 1883, during the last minimum in the Wolf-Gleissberg cycle. It also occurred right after a solar minimum, at the beginning of the transition to a new max in the 11 year cycle. 1883 also falls within the years of transition from W-G cycle min ramping up to the 1958 max as indicated in Table 1 of the paper linked above.

Not trying to argue with ya there Tom 'cause I agree that solar activity effects the amount, and longevity, of dust in the atmosphere, it just seems that including all the pieces of the puzzle, as I see it anyways, has brought me to a different conclusion in how that relates to long and short term solar cycles.

cheers

[ahriman]

Hi all

It's been a while since last posting anything here; the discussions are always vital and intelligent. I was wondering, since I'd not seen any reference to it, how the "jet stream" might figure into the electric model. Could it be called a Birkeland current? Since it is variable in strength and position during the year, it seems there must be a correlation to solar physical conditions. I'd love to hear some thoughts.

Thanks

Jeff

[nick c]

Hi Jeff,
Yes, that seems to be the general idea. The jet stream is an Earthly version of atmospheric features found at or near the poles of several other planets.
From Global Warming In A Climate of Ignorance

The electromotive power is deposited mostly in the upper atmosphere at mid to low latitudes and gives rise to fast upper atmosphere winds and even "super rotation." That is, the wind races around the planet faster than the planet turns. It is a phenomenon observed on Venus and Titan and remains unexplained by atmospheric physics, which relies on solar heating. It is the cause of the extraordinary winds on the gas giant planets in the outer solar system, where solar heating is weak. It has implications for the jet streams and weather patterns on Earth as well. Notably, the polar current streams take the form of twin Birkeland current filaments, which give rise to the enigmatic "double vortexes" seen at the poles of Venus. It is apparent that electrical energy from space doesn't merely light up auroras. It has a profound influence on upper atmosphere winds and storms. An expert on the dynamics of planetary atmospheres, F. W. Taylor, has admitted, "the absence of viable theories which can be tested, or in this case [Venusian polar vortex] any theory at all, leaves us uncomfortably in doubt as to our basic ability to understand even gross features of planetary atmospheric circulations." Meanwhile, electrical energy appears nowhere in any climate model.

Nick

[nick c]

This thread is a combination of the following threads:

Fair Weather Current

Scientists discover surprise in Earth's upper atmosphere

Earth Atmosphere Collapse Puzzles Scientists

Electric Wind

structure of the earths atmosphere

ALL-CLEAR IN THE STRATOSPHERE?

Jet Stream

Jet Streams Shifting?

[Mr_Majestic]

Found this on my daily trawl though the various science websites I visit. Thought it interesting enough to share.

Bacteria normally found 30 kilometres above Earth have been identified as highly efficient generators of electricity.

I didn't even know life existed at such an altitude, I thought it was a hoax at first until I did some digging.

Also found this study from 2010, "Biological responses of Bacillus stratosphericus to floating electrode-dielectric barrier discharge plasma treatment." Unfortunately, you have to be a member/pay to view the whole paper but the abstract gets the point across, keywords being plasma and discharge.

Thoughts?

[mharratsc]

Life exists in almost every niche then. From the depths of the deepest holes that we've drilled in solid rock, to the very limits of the stratosphere itself. The electrical power it can generate - in my opinion - probably plays a huge part in how it can stay aloft. Who needs wings when you can be your own electromagnet?

All I can say is... wow!

[TalonThorn]

In case you didn't know about this, it is planned for tonight (midnight to 3 a.m., March 23 (EDT?) ). I thought it might be of interest.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/sunea ... atrex.html

The high-altitude jet stream is higher than the one commonly reported in weather forecasts. The winds found in this upper jet stream typically have speeds of 200 to well over 300 mph and create rapid transport from the Earth's mid latitudes to the polar regions. This jet stream is located in the same region where strong electrical currents occur in the ionosphere. It is therefore a region with a lot of electrical turbulence, of the type that can adversely affect satellite and radio communications.

[Sparky]

high-altitude jet stream located 60 to 65 miles above the surface of the Earth.

+300k ft ..what atmosphere is available at that height?!

[GaryN]

So how many of these type of phenomena might be in our atmosphere all the time, but most often not energetic enough to be seen?

Bigger:
http://0e33611cb8e6da737d5c-e13b5a910e1 ... 377_lg.jpg
http://spaceweathergallery.com/indiv_up ... uo93g1el61

[justcurious]

This thread is a data goldmine. I need to start bookmarking and organizing valuable threads like these.