Incoherent Scatter Radar Measurements in the Auroral Zone

摘要

The geometry of the UHF tristatic system in the EISCAT incoherent scatter facility is described and the effective scattering volume of the radar in the ionosphere is evaluated as a function of the position of the scattering point and the transmitted pulse length. The relative merits of operating the radar with linear and circular polarization are discussed. A method of determining the errors in the plasma parameters, measured by incoherent scatter radar, through the use of a simulation of the radar system is described. Under favorable circumstances the EISCAT UHF radar can make meaningful measurements of electron density, electron temperature, and ion temperature with a height resolution of a few kilometers and in a matter of seconds. Measurements made by the Chatanika incoherent scatter radar over a three day period are investigated. An empirical relationship between the heat input to the neutral atmosphere and the ground magnetic disturbance is obtained. A technique for interpreting monopulse radar measurements made in the E-region is described and used to determine the ion neutral collision frequency.