• Login
    View Item 
    •   Home
    • University of Alaska Fairbanks
    • UAF Graduate School
    • Physics
    • View Item
    •   Home
    • University of Alaska Fairbanks
    • UAF Graduate School
    • Physics
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Browse

    All of Scholarworks@UACommunitiesPublication DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsTypeThis CollectionPublication DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsType

    My Account

    Login

    First Time Submitters, Register Here

    Register

    Statistics

    Display statistics

    Poker flat incoherent scatter radar investigations of the nighttime E-region

    • CSV
    • RefMan
    • EndNote
    • BibTex
    • RefWorks
    Thumbnail
    Name:
    Whittier_uaf_0006N_10164.pdf
    Size:
    3.846Mb
    Format:
    PDF
    Download
    Author
    Whittier, Robin L.
    Chair
    Makarevich, Roman
    Committee
    Conde, Mark
    Newman, David
    Zhang, Hui
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/11122/4551
    Abstract
    Plasma within the ionosphere affects technology, such as long distance communications and satellite navigation, by scattering and altering the propagation of radio waves sent through the ionosphere. Understanding the structure and dynamics of the ionosphere that may interfere with modern technology is therefore an important aspect of Space Weather research. In this thesis, the average characteristics and dynamics of the nighttime E-region (90-150 km in altitude) are investigated during auroral disturbances and near extreme solar minimum. The near-continuous data on electron density obtained with the Poker Flat Incoherent Scatter Radar (PFISR) near Fairbanks, Alaska are utilized. A number of correlation analyses between E-region electron content and AE index are performed in order to examine the influence of geomagnetic conditions on the E-region in relation to time of the day as well as seasonal and solar cycle effects. It is shown that E-region electron content and AE index exhibit significant positive correlation, particularly near local magnetic midnight, with greater correlation generally occurring in spring and autumn. The midnight feature is interpreted as an indication that the electrojet system near midnight is mostly controlled by electric conductance. The presented statistical results on the current-conductance relationship utilizing a new dataset strengthen conclusions derived from previous studies. The extent of E-region contribution to the total electron content (TEC) is also estimated and investigated for various conditions for the first time using the full altitude profile of PFISR. The estimates ranged between 5%-60% and more active periods generally displayed a more significant contribution from the E-region to TEC. Additionally, using the AE index as an indicator of auroral disturbance onset, the evolution of auroral density enhancements is explored using the superposed epoch analysis technique. The behavior of E-region electron content, peak density, height of peak density, and layer thickness is considered and three discernible phases in response of the thick E-layer to auroral disturbances are found. The observations are consistent with a scenario in which an initially soft and broad auroral electron energy spectrum quickly hardens and narrows during the main response and then slowly softens and becomes more broad during recovery.
    Description
    Thesis (M.S.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2014
    Date
    2014-05
    Type
    Thesis
    Collections
    Physics

    entitlement

     
    ABOUT US|HELP|BROWSE|ADVANCED SEARCH

    The University of Alaska Fairbanks is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer and educational institution and is a part of the University of Alaska system.

    ©UAF 2013 - 2023 | Questions? ua-scholarworks@alaska.edu | Last modified: September 25, 2019

    Open Repository is a service operated by 
    Atmire NV
     

    Export search results

    The export option will allow you to export the current search results of the entered query to a file. Different formats are available for download. To export the items, click on the button corresponding with the preferred download format.

    By default, clicking on the export buttons will result in a download of the allowed maximum amount of items.

    To select a subset of the search results, click "Selective Export" button and make a selection of the items you want to export. The amount of items that can be exported at once is similarly restricted as the full export.

    After making a selection, click one of the export format buttons. The amount of items that will be exported is indicated in the bubble next to export format.