The Radiative Damping of Short Vertical Scale Waves in the Mesosphere

Abstract

The mesospheric radiative damping rates for temperature perturbations with vertical wavelengths less than 6 km are calculated, based on previous works of Spiegel and Fels. Effects due to the breakdown of local thermodynamic equilibrium are included, and found to be important above 70 km. The damping calculated is considerably weaker than that found recently by Schoeberl, Strobel, and Apruzese.