Brightness of the O2 atmospheric bands in the daytime thermosphere

The Fabry-Perot interferometer on Dynamics Explorer 2 was used as a low sensitivity photometer to study the O2 Atmospheric A band during the daytime. A study of the brightness of the emission showed that the assumed source of O2(b1[Sigma]g+) in the thermosphere, O(1D), can account for the observed intensity up to about 250 km but with a significantly different scale height. This combined with an enhanced brightness above this altitude suggests an additional source for this emission.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/25793/1/0000355.pd