Magnetic aspect angle dependence of spectra from coherent radio aurora backscatter

Journal Article · Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1989 · Journal of Geophysical Research; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/JA094iA04p03663· OSTI ID:6049542

Watermann, J; McDiarmid, D R ^[1]; Koehler, J A; Sofko, G J ^[2]; McNamara, A G ^[1]

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1. National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario (Canada)
2. Univ. of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon (Canada)

In 1981, a multiple path radar system was operated on the Canadian prairies with three 50-MHz transmitters and two receivers all separately located such as to establish six backscatter links. The radar beams illuminated the same scatter volume in the ionospheric E layer. Four of these links produced coherent backscatter signals from 3-m wavelength irregularities under different magnetic aspect angles ranging from 1.5{degree} to 5.9{degree} (reference height 110 km), but under almost identical drift flow angles. The radars were operated in the CW mode which yielded high time and spectral resolution but only moderate spatial resolution. In order to avoid confusion between spectral peaks from different locations within the backscatter volume, only single peaked spectra have been analyzed and compared. The Doppler shifts of both type I and type II spectra exhibit an aspect angle dependence which is much weaker than that predicted by existing linear and nonlinear theories.

• OSTI ID: 6049542
• Journal Information: Journal of Geophysical Research; (USA), Vol. 94:A4; ISSN 0148-0227
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
E REGION
ELECTRON DENSITY
AURORAL ZONES
BACKSCATTERING
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
DOPPLER EFFECT
ELECTRIC FIELDS
GEOMAGNETIC FIELD
PLASMA WAVES
RADAR
SIGNALS
SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION
DISTRIBUTION
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
IONOSPHERE
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
PLANETARY IONOSPHERES
RANGE FINDERS
SCATTERING
640201* - Atmospheric Physics- Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena