Secondary Gravity Wave Generation over Orographic Gravity Wave Hotspot Regions and Resulting Influences in the Mesosphere and Lower Thermosphere (Invited Presentation)

Stratospheric gravity wave (GW) hotspots have been observed over regions of significant orography [e.g. Hoffmann et al., Atmos. Chem. Phys., 2016], and these orographic GWs break at various regions from the stratosphere to the mesosphere and lower thermosphere [Bossert et al., JGR, 2015, 2017]. As a consequence of orographic GW breaking, secondary GWs are generated, yielding the potential for these hotspot regions to have influences at higher altitudes and over different regions than the primary breaking GW [Vadas et al., JGR, 2003]. This presentation discusses recent observational studies of breaking orographic GWs and observed secondary GWs arising from regions of breaking. These observations are combined with modeling efforts to quantify breaking orographic GWs, and the influences arising from generated secondary GWs.