An extended investigation of noctilucent cloud dynamics at Chatanika, Alaska using lidar, satellite, and radar observations

This study presents observations of noctilucent clouds (NLCs) and associated mesospheric conditions at Poker Flat Research Range (PFRR), Chatanika, Alaska (65° N, 147° W). NLCs were measured using the Rayleigh lidar system from 2005 to 2022, with a total of 28 events recorded between late July and early August. The clouds were characterized in terms of brightness and duration using the peak and integrated backscatter coefficients from lidar data. Local wind patterns were analyzed using meteor radar observations, while Aura MLS data provided temperature and water vapor profiles during the NLC events. The results show that NLC occurrence at Chatanika is strongly linked to temperatures relative to the frost point and indicate that the brightest NLCs occurred during periods when MLS collocations indicated marginally subsaturated background conditions at standard levels. Cloud-favorable conditions exist several hundred kilometers north of Chatanika, and meteor radar winds support this interpretation, suggesting that southward transport played a major role in delivering NLCs to the site.