Revealing the Dynamics of Atmospheric Gravity Waves: Insights from an Annular Solar Eclipse Event at Artesia Science Center, NM

We unveil possibly the first detections of annular-eclipse AGWs and their properties at Artesia Science Centre (ASC), an isolated region in New Mexico. ASC was in the path of the 2023 Annular Eclipse, and experienced maximum annularity for 2 mins 30 secs. We launched radiosondes hourly on 22 flights to record changes in Earth’s atmosphere, such as temperature and wind direction. We filtered out first-order perturbations and identified AGWs in wavelet diagrams. We observed 55 AGWs at ASC between 00:00 UTC October 14, 2023, and 22:00 UTC on October 14, 2023, this covered the duration of the annular eclipse, which was from approximately 14:00 UTC to 18:00 UTC. Notably, 17 AGWs were detected during the eclipse between the first and last contact, while the remaining waves were observed under non-eclipse conditions. Our analysis of the wave propagation direction reveals a clear pattern, with waves spreading from the launch sites in various directions. The comparison between eclipse-driven and other AGWs shows no significant differences in energy distribution, propagation direction, amplitude, frequency, or momentum flux, indicating that eclipse events do not notably alter AGW properties. Notably, the horizontal wavelengths of AGWs detected during the eclipse are larger than their vertical wavelengths, suggesting stable atmospheric conditions with predominantly horizontal propagation. The energy characteristics of eclipse-driven AGWs are similar to those driven by other atmospheric phenomena, indicating consistent AGW behavior. Our findings imply that while solar eclipses induce AGWs, their properties are consistent with typical AGW behavior observed in the atmosphere. Further research with extensive data and higher resolution measurements is necessary to fully understand eclipse AGW dynamics and their atmospheric impact.