SOME ASPECTS OF THE GENERAL CIRCULATION OF THE LOWER STRATOSPHERE R, E. NEWELL and A, J. MILLER Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts ABSTRACT A review is presented of the temperature and wind structure of the lowest 80 km of the atmosphere. The interaction between radiative and dynamic processes to produce the observed temperature distribution is discussed. It is concluded that the lower stratosphere and the mesosphere receive energy from the regions immediately below. It appears that mass transfer in the lower stratosphere is pri- marily accomplished by large-scale eddy processes. Forced mean meridional circulations arise from these processes; the possible magnitudes and signs of the mean circulations are examined. Various terms in the energy budget of the lower stratosphere are presented and discussed for the period of the International Geophysical Year. INTRODUCTION The majority of the studies performed by the Planetary Circulations Project with AEC support have been concentrated on the region of the atmosphere between 15 and 30 km. Insofar as many of our findings have indicated that this layer is closely coupled to systems above and below it, it is perhaps appropriate to commence with a brief discussion of some general properties of the circulation below 80 km. CIRCULATION SYSTEMS BELOW 80 KM Meridional cross sections of average temperature and zonal wind for winter and summer have been published by several authors (e.g., 392