Microphysical and turbulent measurements of the Schmidt number in the vicinity of polar mesosphere summer echoes

Abstract

During the ECHO campaign in 1994 neutral and electron density fluctuations were measured together with charged aerosols on the same sounding rocket launched close to a very high frequency radar detecting pole mesosphere summer echoes (PMSE). This combination of measurements allows for an independent test of the microphysical and the turbulence interpretations of the Schmidt number (Sc). A model of aerosol charging is applied to the measured plasma profiles. Spectral analysis of the electron density fluctuations showed enhancements of spectral densities at small scales. The energy dissipation rate of 67 mW/kg as derived from neutral air turbulence measurements on the same rocket is in excellent agreement with the microphysical result.