Rayleigh Lidar Network Observations and Analysis of the Evolution of the Arctic Middle Atmosphere during the IPY Winter 2007-2008

A network of five Rayleigh lidars (i.e., Kuehlungsborn, Germany (54N, 12E), Chatanika, USA (65N, 147W), Kangerlussuaq, Greenland (67N, 51W), Andoya, Norway (69N, 16E), and Eureka, Canada (80N, 86W)) has been used to measure middle atmosphere temperature profiles through the 2007-2008 winter and spring. These measurements are being made as part of the project Pan-Arctic Studies of the Coupled Tropospheric, Stratospheric and Mesospheric Circulation as part of the Fourth International Polar Year (IPY-4). This project is a component of the two full IPY proposals; International Arctic Systems for Observing the Atmosphere (IASOA) and The Structure and Evolution of the Polar Stratosphere and Mesosphere and Links to the Troposphere during IPY (SPARC-IPY). The lidar network is part of the Arctic Observing Network (AON). The resolution and distribution of these lidar measurements provides the basis for a pan-Arctic perspective of the middle atmosphere circulation. We combine these lidar data with satellite observations and meteorological re-analyses to study the structure, evolution, and variability of the Arctic stratospheric vortex and Aleutian anticyclone. In this study we present the evolution of the Arctic middle atmosphere during the winter of 2007-2008. We highlight a stratospheric warming event that occurred during 20-26 February 2008. During this week the vortex was disrupted by the Aleutian anticyclone, then split at higher altitudes, and eventually reformed. The lidar measurements show that the altitude and temperature of the stratopause vary considerably (10 km, 30 K) from night-to-night and that the observed temperature structure often differs from that reported by the standard climatologies (e.g., SPARC). We discuss the observations in terms of the Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH).