Climatology of the short-period (8-h and 6-h) tides observed by meteor radars at Tromsø and Svalbard

The paper presents climatology of the poorly known, particularly at high latitudes, short-period (8- and 6-h) tides observed by meteor radars at high latitudinal stations Tromsø (70°N, 19°E) and Svalbard (78°N, 16°E) based on 16 years (2003–2018) and 18 years (2001–2018) of measurements, respectively. The main focus of this study is to clarify the seasonal variability and vertical structure of the two tides observed at both sites. It is found that at the two not very distant high-latitude stations Tromsø and Svalbard both tides have not only different seasonal variability but also some distinction in the altitude structure as well. In general the short-period tides at both sites are vertically upward propagating waves but with seasonally depending vertical wavelength. The two tides at Tromsø and the 8-h one at Svalbard reveal some inter-annual variability with a period of quasi-2 years. An assessment of the solar heating as the main mechanism for the generation of the 8- and 6-h tides simulated by the model WACCM6 is presented as well. The results could be used as benchmarks for model simulations and for understanding better the forcing mechanisms of these short-period tides at high latitudes.