HR: 14:50h
AN: SA53C-04    [Abstracts]
TI: On the initial perturbation of mesospheric dust associated irregularities by high powered radio waves
AU: * Chen, C
EM: chenc@vt.edu
AF: Virginia Tech, 302 Whittemore Hall (0111), Blacksburg, VA 24060, United States
AU: Scales, W
EM: wscales@vt.edu
AF: Virginia Tech, 302 Whittemore Hall (0111), Blacksburg, VA 24060, United States
AB: Important observational manifestations of subvisible mesospheric dust are Polar Mesospheric Summer Echoes PMSE which are produced by scattering from electron irregularities produced by dust charging. It has been observed that the PMSE strength can be artificially modified by using a ground-based ionospheric heating facility to perturb the electron irregularity source region that is believed to produce PMSE. Recently it has become evident that significant diagnostic information may be available about the dust layer from the temporal behavior of the electron irregularities during the heating process which modifies the background electron temperature. Particularly interesting and important periods of the temporal behavior are during the turn-on and turn-on of the radio wave heating. Most past theoretical models and experimental investigations have concentrated primarily on the later period. The objective here is to consider the temporal behavior and possibilities for diagnostic information available during the turn-on period of the radio wave. First, approximate analytical models are developed and compared to a more accurate full computational model as a reference. Then from the temporal behavior of the electron irregularities during the turn-on of the radio wave, the analytical models are used to obtain possible diagnostic information for various charged dust and background plasma quantities. First experimental campain was performed last summer in HAARP, Gakona, AK. Preliminary measurment results show very promising application of the theory.
DE: 2427 Ionosphere/atmosphere interactions (0335)
DE: 7849 Plasma interactions with dust and aerosols (2461)
SC: SPA-Aeronomy [SA]
MN: 2007 Joint Assembly