Improved Understanding of Thermosphere-Mesosphere-Stratosphere-Troposphere Coupling Using Lidar Measurements

日地关系是研究太阳光线和粒子能量如何通过地球的大气-电离层-磁层系统进入和分布。电离层是上层大气（距地球表面80至500公里）的带电区域，而磁层是太阳磁场与地球磁场相互作用产生的地球周围空间的延伸区域。大气分量传统上强调太阳能与低层大气的相互作用。在过去的20年中，人们已经认识到低层大气与高层大气和电离层的耦合对理解该系统至关重要。因此，需要在广泛的高度范围内同时进行测量，以提供了解影响地表附近和地表以上100公里的天气和气候过程所需的输入。拟议的研究项目对加拿大人有几个显著的好处。更好地了解低层、中层和高层大气之间的耦合是改进天气和气候模式的一个关键因素，因为发生在大气某一区域的过程可能对因高度、纬度、经度和时间而与第一个区域分开的其他区域产生重大影响。所提出的测量方法将增进我们对大气中污染物运移的认识。现在已经确定，在世界上一个地区产生的污染可以被提升到平流层，在那里它既可以影响臭氧，又可以在混合回到地面之前被输送到很远的地方。从这些研究中获得的知识将用于提高天气预报的质量、空气质量引起的健康问题、平流层臭氧水平下降、北半球GPS导航以及预测未来气候变化。

Solar-terrestrial relations is the study of how solar light and particle energy enters and is distributed through Earth's atmosphere-ionosphere-magnetosphere system. The ionosphere is the electrically charged region of the upper atmosphere (80 to 500 km above Earth's surface) while the magnetosphere is the extended region of space around Earth resulting from the Sun's magnetic field interacting with Earth's magnetic field. The atmospheric component traditionally emphasizes the interaction of solar energy with the lower atmosphere. Over the last 20 years it has been realized that the coupling of the lower atmosphere with the upper atmosphere and ionosphere is critical to understanding the system. Thus, simultaneous measurements over a wide range of heights are necessary to provide the inputs needed to understand processes which affect weather and climate, both near the surface and 100s of km above the surface.The proposed research program has several significant benefits for Canadians. A better understanding of coupling between the lower, middle and upper atmosphere is a key element to improving weather and climate models, as processes that occur in one region of the atmosphere can have a significant effect on other regions separated from the first by height, latitude, longitude and time. The proposed measurements will improve our understanding of the transport of pollutants in the atmosphere. It is now well established that pollution created in one region of the world can be lifted into the stratosphere, where it can both affect ozone and be transported great distances before being mixed back down to the surface. Knowledge gained from these studies will be used to address the quality of weather forecasts, health concerns due to air quality, declining levels of stratospheric ozone, GPS navigation in the North and predicting future climate change.