HR: 14:30h
AN: SA43A-04 INVITED    [Abstracts]
TI: Using PFISR to Enable High-Latitude Modeling to Separate Climate and Weather in Ionospheric Variability Studies
AU: * Sojka, J J
EM: sojka@cc.usu.edu
AF: Utah State University, Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences 4405 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-4405, United States
AU: David, M
EM: michael.david@aggiemail.usu.edu
AF: Utah State University, Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences 4405 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-4405, United States
AU: Schunk, R W
EM: schunk@cc.usu.edu
AF: Utah State University, Center for Atmospheric and Space Sciences 4405 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-4405, United States
AB: An outstanding challenge in modeling the high-latitude ionosphere using physics-based models revolves about validating the models ionospheric climatology and weather when both occur simultaneously. One effective way to separate these two phenomena is based on their distinctively different timescales. Climatology variations occur on scales of weeks to years while weather is characterized by impulsive phases of minutes to hours and recovery lasting days. The recently commissioned Poker Flat Incoherent Scatter Radar (PFISR), in a revolutionary way, is amassing a data set for climate-weather separation by being able to operate continuously. PFISR has been operating continuously and will continue to do so throughout the International Polar Year (IPY) that began in March 2007. PFISR has already collected six months of observations, which contain equinox and summer climate information and the corresponding seasonal transitions. The expected PFISR progress through the Fall AGU Meeting will extend the data set by an equinox through winter seasonal transition. This then establishes a continuous ionospheric climate record at Poker Flat with superimposed weather episodes. The record is extensive: altitude profiles through the ionosphere of electron density; field-aligned ion drift; and ion and electron temperatures. It is this complement of state parameters that makes the ISR technique unique from a ground-based observation perspective. The Utah State University (USU) first principles Time Dependent Ionospheric Model (TDIM) is used in this study to investigate how its modeled seasonal climatology can be validated. The validation will be of the model's plasma flux tubes continuity, momentum, and energy equation solutions and both the inputs and boundary conditions of the numerical solutions of these equations. At the same time, a method then becomes available to separate the weather from the climate in the observations which leads to a significantly improved set of measurements of the impact of space weather on the ionosphere. The investigation will focus on the entire PFISR data set rather than focus on a "best case subset." A second continuous ISR data base from the Svalbard EISCAT ISR will be referenced to show the generalization of the PFISR-TDIM analysis to the whole high-latitude region.
DE: 2407 Auroral ionosphere (2704)
DE: 2427 Ionosphere/atmosphere interactions (0335)
DE: 2447 Modeling and forecasting
DE: 2475 Polar cap ionosphere
SC: SPA-Aeronomy [SA]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting