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- Title
Impact of the Ionosphere Disturbed by Rocket Plume on OTHR Radio Wave Propagation.
- Authors
Ma, Xin; Fang, Hanxian; Wang, Sicheng; Chang, Shujie
- Abstract
The main chemicals of rocket exhaust plume are released into the ionosphere, which cause three‐dimensional (3‐D) disturbances. By simulating the disturbance, we investigate the influence of ionospheric disturbance by the chemical release on the propagation of over‐the‐horizon radar (OTHR) waves. Based on the absorption simulation model, the absorption loss of OTHR waves caused by rocket plume was simulated. Using 3‐D digital ray tracing, we simulated the propagation path of radio waves in the "ionospheric hole" region. The simulation results show that the absorption loss of short waves decreases with an increase in the frequency and elevation angle of the ray. The absorption loss in the year of high solar activity is significantly higher than that in the year of low solar activity. The absorption value is largest at noon and smallest at night. In terms of seasonal variation, the absorption of radio waves is strongest in summer and weakest in winter. Additionally, the ionospheric hole area increases with the release time. The 6 MHz high‐frequency waves cannot reach the disturbance height and are completely reflected to the ground. Most of the 8 MHz radio waves are reflected to the ground, and some of them pass through the ionosphere. The radio waves at 10, 15, and 20 MHz can pass through the hole area of the ionosphere. Moreover, the ionospheric disturbance generated by the plume has a focusing effect on the propagation of OTHR shortwaves. With the increase in radio frequency, the focusing height gradually increases, and the focusing effect gradually weakens. Plain Language Summary: The release of rocket exhaust plume will generate an "ionospheric hole" at the corresponding height, and the temporal and spatial variations of the ionospheric disturbance are simulated at 100, 300, and 600 s after chemical release. In this study, we investigated the influence of an ionospheric hole created by rocket plume on the propagation of different frequencies of over‐the‐horizon radar (OTHR) waves. The absorption loss of short waves decreases with increasing frequency and elevation angle. The absorption in the year of high solar activity is significantly higher than that in the year of low solar activity. In addition, the absorption of radio waves is strongest in summer and weakest in winter. During 1 day, the absorption value is largest at noon and smallest at night. High‐frequency radio waves at 6 MHz are completely reflected to the ground through the ionosphere. Most of the 8 MHz radio rays are reflected to the ground, and some of them pass through the ionosphere. Radio waves of 10, 15, and 20 MHz can pass through the "hole" in the ionosphere. The ionospheric disturbance generated by the plume has a focusing effect on the propagation of OTHR radio waves. Key Points: Three‐dimensional ray tracing is adopted to simulate propagation paths of radio waves, which propagate through ionospheric hole at different release timesThe absorption loss at high solar activity is significantly higher than that at low solar activity, which is strongest in summer and weakest in winterRadio waves at 10, 15, and 20 MHz can all pass through "ionospheric hole" area, and most of 8 MHz rays are reflected to the ground
- Subjects
IONOSPHERE; ROCKET engine exhaust; RADIO wave propagation; IONOSPHERIC radio wave absorption; OVER-the-horizon radar; SOLAR activity
- Publication
Radio Science, 2021, Vol 56, Issue 4, p1
- ISSN
0048-6604
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1029/2020RS007183