Gravity Wave-Driven Fluctuations in the O2 Atmospheric (0-1) Nightglow from an Extended, Dissipative Emission Region

The wave-driven fluctuations in the O2(0-1) atmospheric nightglow is modeled and the parameter (eta) is calculated using a model that accounts for either three-body recombination of atomic oxygen atoms alone to form the O2(b exp 1 Sigma(g)(+)) state directly, or by the further inclusion of the process that allows the formation of the O2(c exp 1 Sigma(u)(-)) intermediate state. The calculations are performed for a latitude of 18 deg N and for the months of March and June. The general results, which display how (eta) varies with wave period, horizontal wavelength, season, and chemical scheme, show that for given values of wave period and horizontal wavelength it is not possible to discriminate between seasonal effects and between the effects of different chemical schemes at evanescent and short gravity wave periods. It is shown that, when quenching by atomic oxygen is ignored, the resulting values of (eta) calculated with the complete chemistry are similar to those obtained from the three-body recombination scheme alone.