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Excitation of whistler mode signals via injection of polarized VLF waves with the Siple transmitter
Author(s) -
Mielke T. A.,
Elkins C. J.,
Helliwell R. A.,
Inan U. S.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
radio science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.371
H-Index - 84
eISSN - 1944-799X
pISSN - 0048-6604
DOI - 10.1029/91rs02457
Subject(s) - whistler , transmitter , physics , antenna (radio) , ionosphere , optics , polarization (electrochemistry) , geophysics , computational physics , telecommunications , electron , channel (broadcasting) , quantum mechanics , computer science , chemistry
Whistler mode waves of various polarizations were transmitted by the Siple Station, Antarctica, VLF transmitter and received near the geomagnetic conjugate point at Lake Mistissini, Quebec. Crossed 21‐km horizontal dipole antennas on top of the 2‐km‐thick ice sheet were used to transmit 2‐ to 4‐kHz waves alternately with right‐hand circular, left‐hand circular, and linear polarizations. Excitation of a multiplicity of magnetospheric propagation paths and the received signal strength were observed to depend on the transmitter antenna polarization. Where whistler mode growth and emission triggering occurred, saturated peak values of received signals were independent of antenna polarization and initial injected power levels, in agreement with previous findings. Propagation paths of ducted Siple signals observed at Lake Mistissini were identified with propagation paths deduced from natural whistlers, from which the L shell values and equatorial number densities for the paths were calculated. A combination of L shell data and models of antenna coupling into the whistler mode may aid in the location of ducts. Dynamics Explorer 1 satellite recordings of unducted Siple signals showed trends similar to the ground data on ducted signals. The observations are discussed in the context of a simplified model of the coupling from the Siple antenna into the ionosphere, which provides reasonable agreement with observations.