POSITIVE ION COMPOSITION MEASUREMENTS IN THE LOWER IONOSPHERE DURING THE 12 NOVEMBER 1966 SOLAR ECLIPSE

Abstract

Positive ion composition measurements in the D and E regions were performed on three rocket flights during the 1966 solar eclipse program conducted at Cassino, Brazil. The E region results showed that, at totality, NO+ and O2+ decreased in density while the ratio NO+/O2 increased. Long-lived meteoric ions appeared to be unaffected during the short period of the eclipse. A submerged layer of meteoric ions became prominent at totality when the molecular ion densities were smallest and produced a sporadic E layer. The D region results indicated that the decay in the water cluster ions at totality was probably less than a factor of four in the vicinity of 80 km. This work represents part of a continuing Air Force program to study lower ionospheric processes which affect communications.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 01, 1970
Accession Number
AD0705540

Entities

People

  • Alan D. Bailey
  • Louis E. Della Lucca
  • Rocco S. Narcisi

Organizations

  • Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Altitude
  • Attitude Control Systems
  • Charged Particles
  • Control Systems
  • Detectors
  • Electrons
  • Ionosphere
  • Ions
  • Mass Spectrometers
  • Measurement
  • Metals
  • Solar Eclipses
  • Spectrometers
  • United States
  • X Rays
  • X-Ray Detectors

Readers

  • Space/Atmospheric Physics.