Summary

The mesosphere region, which lies at the edge of space, contains the coldest layer of the Earth’s atmosphere, with summer temperatures as low as minus 130 ◦C. In this extreme environment ice aerosol layers have appeared since the dawn of industrialization—whose existence may arguably be linked to human influence—on yet another layer of the Earth’s fragile atmosphere. Ground-based and space-based experiments conducted in the Arctic and Antarctic during the International Polar Year (IPY) aim to address limitations in our knowledge and to advance our understanding of thermal and dynamical processes at play in the polar mesosphere.

Authors:Morris R. Murphy D. Published in: 2008 Category 1: Peer-reviewed literature Program area: Ice, Ocean, Atmosphere and Climate
Morris R., Murphy D. (2008) The polar mesosphere, Physics Education 43(4). 366-374;

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