Investigation of the Winds and Electron Concentration Variability in the D Region of the Ionosphere by the Partial-Reflection Radar Technique

240 p.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1982.The development and first observations of the partial-reflection drifts experiment at Urbana, Illinois (40(DEGREES)N) are described. The winds data from the drifts experiment are compared with electron concentration data obtained by the differential-absorption technique to study the possible meteorological causes of the winter anomaly in the mesosphere at midlatitudes. Winds data obtained by the meteor-radar experiment at Urbana are also compared with electron concentration data measured at Urbana. A significant correlation is shown in both cases between southward winds and increasing electron concentration measured at the same location during winter.The possibility of stratospheric/mesospheric coupling is investigated by comparing satellite-measured 0.4 mbar geopotential data with mesospheric electron concentration data. No significant coupling was observed.The winds measured at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (52(DEGREES)N) are compared with the electron concentrations measured at Urbana in an effort to establish a transport path from the auroral zone to Urbana. No constant fixed relationship is shown, but significant correlations are shown for short segments of the winter. A significant coherence is observed at discrete frequencies during segments of the winter.U of I OnlyRestricted to the U of I community idenfinitely during batch ingest of legacy ETD