The effect of plasma density structure on HF radio wave propagation at auroral and polar latitudes measured by e-POP

Abstract:

One of the scientific objectives of the enhanced Polar Outflow Probe (e-POP) Radio Receiver Instrument (RRI) is to study ionospheric density structure and its impact on High Frequency (HF) radio wave propagation. We present a survey of several ePOP RRI transits through isolated beams of the Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) Saskatoon and Rankin Inlet radars. It reveals that the spreading of a SuperDARN beam beyond its nominal azimuthal beam width of 3.24° is a common occurrence at auroral and polar latitudes. Furthermore, on multiple occasions, lateral deviations of a beam’s power peak by several beam widths was measured, indicating the presence of significant plasma density gradients along the ray path. The e-POP RRI measurements illustrate that our understanding and recognition of plasma density gradients and their influence on HF radio wave propagation is limited. We report on the results of employing HF ray tracing techniques to quantify the impact of ionospheric structuring on HF radio wave propagation, and consider the source of the gradients contributing to the spreading of the SuperDARN beams.