Observations of persistent Leonid meteor trails: 2. Photometry and numerical modeling

摘要: During the 1998 Leonid meteor shower, multi-instrument observations of persistent trains were made from Starfire Optical Range on Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, and a secondary site in nearby Placitas, Mexico. The University Illinois Na resonance lidar measured density temperature trains, while various cameras captured images videos some which observed to persist for more than 30 min. measurements allow contribution airglow train luminescence be quantified first time. To do this, is numerically modeled. Cylindrical symmetry assumed, values density, temperature, diffusivity are used. It found that expected luminosity consistent with narrowband CCD all-sky camera observations, but these emissions can contribute only small fraction total light 0.5–1 μ bandwidth. Other potential sources examined, particular, resulting possible excitation monoxides meteoric metals (particularly FeO) O2(b1∑g+) during reactions between atmospheric oxygen species metals. combined processes falls somewhat short explaining brightness, thus additional still needed. In addition, brightness distribution, so-called hollow cylinder effect, remains unexplained.