Physics and Chemistry of Upper Atmosphere

This book contains the lecmres presented at the Summer Advanced Study Institute, 'Physics and Chemistry of Upper Atmospheres' which was held at the University of Orleans, Orleans, France, during the period July 31 through August 11,1972. One­ hundred thirty nine persons from 14 different countries attended the Institute. The authors and the publisher have made a special effort for rapid publication of an up-to-date status of the particles, fields, and processes in the earth's magnetosphere, which is an ever changing area. Special thanks are due to the lecturers for their diligent preparation and excellent presentations. The individual lectures and the published papers were deliberately limited; the authors' cooperation in conforming to these specifications is greatly appreciated. The contents of the book are organized by sub­ ject area rather than in the order in which papers were presented during the Institute. Many thanks are due to Warren Berning, Donald M. Hunten, Edward Llewellyn, J. Ortner, Henry Rishbeth, Harold I Schiff, Lance Thomas, Alister Vallance Jones, and Gilbert Weill, who served as session chairmen during the Institute and contributed greatly to its success by skillfully directing the discussion period in a stimulating manner after each lecture.

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I: Structure and Composition of the Atmosphere.- Neutral Air Density and Composition.- Neutral Wind Structure in the Thermosphere During Quiet and Disturbed Geomagnetic Periods.- The Distribution of Minor Constituents in the Stratosphere and Lower Mesosphere.- Aerosols and Particles.- II: Physical Processes.- Electromagnetic Transport Processes in the Ionosphere.- Heat Balance and Thermal Conduction.- Solar Radiation and Its Absorption in the Upper Atmosphere.- Precipitating Energetic Electrons in the Mid-Latitude Lower Ionosphere.- Transauroral Ionosphere, Magnetospheric Implications.- III: Chemical Processes and Models.- Neutral Atmospheric Chemistry - Introduction and Review.- Ion Chemistry of the D and E Regions.- Gas-Phase Nitrogen and Methane Chemistry in the Atmosphere.- Reactions Involving Excited States of O and O2.- The Oxygen-Hydrogen Atmosphere.- Aerosol Chemistry.- Alkali Chemistry Problems of the Upper Atmosphere.- IV: Experimental Results and Interpretations.- Mass Spectrometer Measurements in the Ionosphere.- Observation and Interpretation of Hydroxyl Airglow Emissions.- O2(1?) in the Atmosphere.- Oxygen and Nitrogen Vibration in the Thermosphere.- OI Emissions.- Vertical Red Line 6300 Å Distribution and Tropical Nightglow Morphology in Quiet Magnetic Conditions.- Indirect Excitation Processes in Aurora.- Observation of O(1D) and N(1D°) Emission in the Polar Aurora.- Hydrogen and Helium Emissions.- Geocoronal Hydrogen.- Infrared Observations of the Earth's Upper Atmosphere.- Balloon Borne Infrared Measurements.- Sunspot Cycle Variation in Atmospheric Density at the Level of the Sodium Layer.- Incoherent Scatter and Vertical Incidence Observations.- The Use of VLF Radio Waves in Ionospheric Research.- V: Other Planets.- The Atmosphere of Mars.- The Upper Atmosphere of Venus: A Review.- The Jovian Upper Atmosphere.- VI: Summary and Conclusions.- Summary.- Conclusions.- Index of Subjects.