Comparison of FOF2 Baselines for Use in Studying the Effects of Solar Ultraviolet Irradiance on the F2 Region of the Ionosphere

摘要

This thesis determined if one or more representations of a baseline foF2 are statistically more accurate than others in representing a background foF2 for studying the effects of solar UV irradiance on the F2 region of the ionosphere. Event days for comparing baselines were determined from satellite recorded UV bursts. Observations from an ionosonde close to local noon at the time of the UV burst were used for foF2 values. Eight baselines were rank ordered against the hourly foF2 values for the event day using eight methods of comparison. The rankings were statistically analyzed using both parametric and nonparametric methods. Using parametric methods, only one baseline was found to be statistically worse than the others. Using nonparametric methods, baselines based on the lower quartile median and the means of the hourly values of the ten quietest days of the month using the Kp scale were found to be statistically better than four of the baselines. However, no statistical difference could be found between these two baselines and the currently accepted baseline of the monthly median values of foF2. Originator supplied keywords include: Ionospheric propagation; F region; and Solar ultraviolet radiation.