Irregularities in ionospheric plasma clouds: their evolution and effect on radio communication. Technical report

Technical Report · Mon Sep 01 04:00:00 EDT 1980

OSTI ID:5766770

Vesecky, J F; Chamberlain, J W; Cornwall, J M; Hammer, D A; Perkins, F W

Both satellite radio communications, which travel through the Earth's ionosphere, and high frequency (HF) sky wave circuits, which use the ionosphere as a refracting medium, can be strongly affected by radio wave scintillation. High altitude nuclear explosions cause scintillation (by strongly disturbing the ionosphere) and thus severely degrade satellite radio communications over a large region. Since further atmospheric nuclear tests are banned, a thorough understanding of the physics involved in both the disturbed ionosphere and its interaction with radio waves is necessary in order to design radio communications systems which will operate satisfactorily in a nuclear environment. During the 1980 JASON Summer Study we addressed some aspects of the evolution of ionospheric irregularities following a high altitude nuclear explosion--the radio wave propagation theory being apparently well understood for the satellite link case. In particular, we have worked on irregularity evolution at late times (approx. hours) after an explosion and the impact of early time irregularity structure on late time evolution. We also raise the question of scintillation effects on HF sky wave communications.

• Research Organization: Stanford Research Inst., Arlington, VA (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5766770
• Report Number(s): AD-A-099770/0
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEFENSE
450200* -- Military Technology
Weaponry
& National Defense-- Nuclear Explosions & Explosives
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Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ATMOSPHERIC EXPLOSIONS
COMMUNICATIONS
DISTURBANCES
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
EQUIPMENT
EXPLOSIONS
INTERFERENCE
IONOSPHERE
NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS
PLANETARY IONOSPHERES
PLASMA
RADIATIONS
RADIO EQUIPMENT
RADIOWAVE RADIATION
SCINTILLATIONS
WAVE PROPAGATION