HR: 0830h
AN: SA21B-0091    [PDF]
TI: Helium ion Measurements From the Arecibo Incoherent Scatter Radar and the DMSP Satelites
AU: * Wilford, C R
EM: cwilford@naic.edu
AF: Arecibo Observatory, HC3 Box 53995, Arecibo, PR 00612 Puerto Rico
AU: Moffett, R J
EM: r.moffett@shef.ac.uk
AF: University of Sheffield, Dept. Applied Maths, Hicks Building, Sheffield, S3 7RH United Kingdom
AU: Gonzalez, S A
EM: sixto@naic.edu
AF: Arecibo Observatory, HC3 Box 53995, Arecibo, PR 00612 Puerto Rico
AU: Venkatraman, S
EM: sarita@utdallas.edu
AF: University of Texas at Dallas, PO Box 830688, Mail Stop F022, Richardson, TX 75080 United States
AB: Data from the Arecibo incoherent scatter radar (ISR) and the DMSP-F13 (Defense Meteorological Satellite Program) satellite are presented and compared. Observations from periods exhibiting the He+ layering phenomenon are analyzed. Historically, there has been little attempt to compare data from the two sources due to difficulties in combining ground-based and space-based studies; also, only recently have light ion concentration measurements from Arecibo been possible in the topside ionosphere up to 2000 km altitude. The results presented show favorable comparison between the two data sources, giving users increased levels of confidence in the observations. Regions where the helium ions are of comparable concentration to the major ions (O+ and H+) are apparent in the data, serving to reinforce the view that the helium ion should not be regarded as a minor ion under all conditions.
DE: 2419 Ion chemistry and composition (0335)
DE: 2437 Ionospheric dynamics
DE: 2443 Midlatitude ionosphere
DE: 2481 Topside ionosphere
SC: SPA - Aeronomy [SA]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting