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At least 19 records

A statistical study of solar type III bursts and auroral kilometric radiation onsets

Simultaneous occurrences of type III solar radio bursts and auroral kilometric radiation were observed by Calvert (1981) using ISEE 1 spectrograms. Calvert presented evidence suggesting that the incoming type III burst stimulates the onset of auroral kilometric radiation (AKR). This paper presents a statistical study of the correlation between type III bursts and auroral kilometric radiation. A superposed epoch analysis was performed on as many as 186 type III events. The type III bursts were detected by the ISEE 3 spacecraft on the sunward side of the earth. At the same time the IMP 8 spacecraft was used to detect onsets of kilometric radiation on the nightside of the earth. For each event the intensities measured by ISEE 3 (type III intensities) were subtracted from the intensities measured by IMP 8 (type III and possible AKR intensities). The resulting intensities for each event were then added to determine if kilometric radiation was preferentially observed following a type III burst. This analysis was performed at frequencies of 100, 178, and 500 kHz. The results of this study show that a statistically significant correlation exists between incoming type III bursts from the sun and kilometric radiation from the earth.

Farrell, W. M.

On the polarization and origin of auroral kilometric radiation

Radio emissions were measured by the Hawkeye 1 satellite at low altitudes over the Southern Hemisphere along the auroral field lines, in the region where the intense nightside auroral kilometric radiation is believed to be generated. These measurements provide new evidence on the mode of propagation and origin of the auroral kilometric radiation. At low altitudes the auroral kilometric radiation is consistently observed to have a low frequency cutoff at the local electron gyrofrequency, f(-) sub g. Since the electron plasma frequency, f(-) sub p, is usually much smaller than f(-) sub g in the region where these observations are obtained, this cutoff corresponds closely with the propagation cutoff for the right-hand mode of propagation. These observations, therefore, provide a strong indication that the auroral kilometric radiation is right-hand polarized in agreement with previous conclusions made on the basis of the angular distribution of this radiation.

Gurnett, D. A.

On the polarization and origin of auroral kilometric radiation

The initial results are presented from observations of auroral kilometric radiation at radial distances of about 2.0 R(E) over the auroral zone. These measurements provide important new evidence on the mode of propagation and origin of the auroral kilometric radiation. The observations were made with the aid of the Hawkeye 1 spacecraft which is in a highly eccentric polar orbit. The three types of high-frequency radio emissions commonly observed by Hawkeye 1 during the low-altitude passes over the southern hemisphere include continuum radiation, auroral kilometric radiation, and auroral hiss. In most cases it is found that the auroral kilometric radiation has a sharply defined low-altitude cutoff at the altitude where the local electron gyrofrequency is equal to the wave frequency. A few exceptional cases occur in which a low-frequency cutoff cannot be clearly identified.

Gurnett, D. A.

Auroral kilometric radiation - Time-averaged source location

In the present paper, the location of the average generation region of auroral kilometric radiation is determined from an analysis of average electric field strengths as a function of spacecraft position in narrow frequency bands centered at 178, 100, and 56.2 kHz. Intense sources of power radiating at kilometric wavelengths are found near 65 degrees invariant latitude in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, from 22 to 24 hours MLT, and between 2 and 4 earth radii. These dominant sources of power produce the electromagnetic radiation described by Kurth et al. (1975) as auroral kilometric radiation. Each Northern and Southern Hemisphere auroral kilometric radiation source is well confined and emits radiation into solid angles of about 4.1 sr at 178 kHz, 2.2 sr at 100 kHz, and 1.5 sr at 56.2 kHz.

Gallagher, D. L.

A feedback model for the source of auroral kilometric radiation

It is noted that in order to compensate for the wave refraction inside the source, the boundary reflection surfaces must converge with altitude, and this implies that the most likely auroral kilometric radiation source would be a thin, local density enhancement, since the refractive index contours at its boundaries would be expected to slope inward. The ISEE observations of multiple spectral components, which are attributed to separate oscillations at different altitudes in the same enhancement, indicate a source thickness as small as 25 km and an internal wave growth threshold of roughly 40 dB, rather than the 70-120 dB previously believed necessary to account for auroral kilometric radiation without feedback. What is considered more significant is that the feedback model accounts for numerous aspects of the auroral kilometric radiation behavior, predicts emission at the wave growth saturation level, and leads to the conclusion that auroral kilometric radiation originates at many compact sites, each emitting a nearly monochromatic wave.

Calvert, W.

Direction-finding measurements of auroral kilometric radiation

Direction-finding measurements with plasma wave experiments on the Hawkeye 1 and Imp 8 satellites are used to locate the source region of auroral kilometric radiation. This radiation has peak intensities between about 100 and 300 kHz and is emitted in intense sporadic bursts lasting for from half an hour to several hours. At peak intensity the total power emitted in this frequency range exceeds 1 billion W. The occurrence of this radiation is known to be closely associated with bright auroral arcs which occur in the local evening auroral regions. Hawkeye 1 provides direction-finding measurements of kilometric radiation from observations at high latitudes over the northern polar regions, and Imp 8 provides similar observations at large radial distances near the equatorial plane. Results from both satellites place the source of the intense auroral kilometric rdiation in the late local evening at about 22.0 hours LT and at a distance of about 0.75 earth radii from the polar axis of the earth.

Kurth, W. S.

Auroral kilometric radiation as an indicator of auroral magnetic disturbances

Satellite low-frequency radio measurements have shown that auroral kilometric radiation, an intense radio emission from the earth's auroral regions, is closely associated with auroral and magnetic disturbances. In this paper a detailed investigation of this relationship is presented, using the auroral electrojet (AE) index as an indicator of auroral magnetic disturbances and radio measurements from the Imp 6 spacecraft. This study indicates that the mean power flux of the 178-kHz radiation tends to be proportional to the 1.2 power of (AE) for AE more than 100 gamma and, with less certainty, to the square of (AE) for AE less than 100 gamma. The correlation coefficient between log AE and the logarithm of the power flux is 0.514. Occasionally, a kilometric radiation event is detected which is not detected by the ground magnetometer stations, even though an auroral substorm is in progress. This study shows that the remote detection of kilometric radio emissions from the earth can be used as a reasonably reliable indicator of auroral substorm activity.

Voots, G. R.

Characteristics of shock-associated fast-drift kilometric radio bursts

The existence of a class of fast-drift, shock-associated (SA), kilometric radio bursts which occur at the time of metric type II emission and which are not entirely the kilometric continuation of metric type III bursts has been reported previously (Cane et al., 1981). In this paper unambiguous SA event criteria are established for the purpose of statistically comparing SA events with conventional kilometric type III bursts. Applying these criteria to all long-duration, fast-drift bursts observed by the ISEE-3 spacecraft during a 28-month interval, it is found that more than 70 percent of the events satisfying the criteria are associated with the radio signatures of coronal shocks. If a given event is associated with a metric type II or type IV burst, it is 13 times more likely to satisfy the SA criteria than an event associated only with metric type III activity.

Macdowall, R. J.

Source and Propagation Characteristics of Kilometric Continuum Observed with Multiple Satellites

Kilometric continuum radiation was first identified with the GEOTAIL Plasma Wave Instrument (PWI) as the high frequency extension of escaping continuum emissions in the frequency range from 100 kHz to 800 kHz. It consists of from a few to many narrow-band emissions. It was observed mainly near the magnetic equator, and its source was expected to be inside of the plasmapause and the topside equatorial region. Recently, data from the IMAGE Radio Plasma Imager (RPI) and Extreme ultraviolet (EUV) experiments have been used to show that kilometric continuum is generated at the plasmapause, in or near the magnetic equator, within a notch region, and have confirmed the expectation. Data from the CRRES PWI have also identified other sources from the equatorial density irregularities. An example of CRRES observations reveals a possibility that kilometric continuum has been radiated as a wide beam emission. The IMAGE and GEOTAIL simultaneous observations are not like the previous observations since they show it has been observed to have a very broad emission cone. It could also be the highest frequency continuum enhancement so far observed since it is associated with a high energy electron injection event.

Hashimoto, K.

The earth as a radio source - Terrestrial kilometric radiation

Based on Imp 6 and 8 satellite observation data, a comprehensive study of terrestrial kilometric radiation is presented. In the light of these data, the earth appears to be a very intense planetary radio source, with a total power output comparable to the decametric radio emission from Jupiter. Terrestrial kilometric (i.e., about 50-500 kHz) radiation seems to originate from low altitudes in the auroral region.

Gurnett, D. A.

Type II bursts at hectometric and kilometric wavelengths from interplanetary shocks

Data are presented on type II and type III radio bursts observed at hectometric and kilometric wavelengths in the interplanetary medium by IMP-6. Thirty-two discrete frequencies were recorded which ranged from 4.9 MHz down to 30 kHz. Intensity contours are plotted for the data, and it is noted that the type II emission was observed at both the plasma frequency characteristic of its point of origin in the corona and the second harmonic of that frequency. It is suggested that hectometric and kilometric type III bursts are observed at twice the plasma frequency of the source.

Malitson, H. H.

Scattering of terrestrial kilometric radiation at very high altitudes

On a number of occasions during the 3.8 yr. operating lifetime of RAE-2, strong terrestrial kilometric radiation was observed when the spacecraft was over the far side of the moon and when the low altitude terrestrial magnetosphere was completely obscured from view. If these deep lunar occultation events are used to infer radio source locations, then it is found that the apparent source must sometimes be situated at geocentric distances of 10 to 40 sub E or more. From an analysis of these events, it is shown that they are probably due to propagation effects rather than the actual generation of the emission at such large distances. The kilometric radiation can be generated near the earth at auroral latitudes and subsequently strongly scattered in the magnetosheath and nearby solar wind to produce the large apparent distances. The most likely scatterers are density inhomogeneities in the magnetosheath plasma and ion plasma waves in the magnetosheath and the upstream solar wind.

Alexander, J. K.

Scattering of terrestrial kilometric radiation at very high altitudes

On a number of occasions during the 3.5-yr operating lifetime of Rae 2, strong terrestrial kilometric radiation has been observed when the spacecraft was over the far side of the moon and when the low-altitude terrestrial magnetosphere was completely obscured from view. If these deep lunar occultation events are used to infer radio source locations, then it is found that the apparent source must sometimes be situated at geocentric distances of 10-40 earth-radii or more. From an analysis of these events, it is shown that they are probably due to propagation effects rather than the actual generation of the emission at such large distances. The kilometric radiation can be generated near the earth at auroral latitudes and subsequently strongly scattered in the magnetosheath and nearby solar wind to produce the large apparent distances. The most likely scatterers are density inhomogeneities in the magnetosheath plasma and ion plasma waves in the magnetosheath and the upstream solar wind.

Alexander, J. K.

Description of the ISEE satellite-to-satellite kilometric wavelength interferometer system

The International Sun-Earth Explorer (ISEE) spacecraft 1 and 2 carry receivers for detecting electromagnetic waves with kilometric wavelengths. For selected receiver frequencies from 30 kHz to 2 MHz, a 10-kHz bandwidth channel is single-sideband mixed down to baseband. These analog data and a reference frequency, which is a submultiple of the local oscillator frequency, are transmitted to ground stations and tape recorded along with the precise time and frequency information. Cross correlation of these tape recorded signals constitutes a satellite-to-satellite interferometer with a fringe spacing of 0.4 to 41 arcmin (at a range of 10,000 to 100 km spacing between spacecraft for 250 kHz in frequency) and with a time-delay resolution of 32 microsec for a 10-kHz bandwidth, which gives an angular resolution of 3 min to 6 deg of arc. For kilometric radiation at earth, sources in the size range of 25 to 2500 km can be identified (from 20 earth radii) and located in relative position ranging from 0.02 to 2 earth radii, depending on spacecraft spacing. Reception and analysis of solar and Jovian bursts may also be possible.

Shawhan, S. D.

Low frequency radio emissions from Jupiter - Jovian kilometric radiation

A new component of the Jovian radio spectrum has been observed by the plasma wave instruments on Voyager 1 and 2 at frequencies ranging from about 10 to 56 kHz or higher. This Jovian kilometric radiation is characterized by storms of emissions lasting typically 45 minutes at 56.2 kHz, however some events persist for as long as four hours. The storms usually exhibit impulsive bursts with time scales of a few seconds to several minutes, although some events show smoothly varying intensities as a function of time. High resolution frequency-time spectrograms reveal a continuum-like background with more intense, narrowband features superimposed. The narrowband, or discrete, features tend to decrease in frequency with increasing time, falling about 1 kHz in 5 to 60 seconds. The maximum power emitted assuming an isotropic radiator near Jupiter and a bandwidth for the most intense bursts of about 10 kHz is about 10 to the 19th watts. The Jovian kilometric radiation is most likely observed within + or - 45 deg of 200 deg System III longitude, lambda III, although there is a secondary maximum near lambda III = 25 deg.

Kurth, W. S.

Spatial and temporal studies of Jovian kilometric radiation

Synoptic studies of Jovian kilometric radiation, based on plasma wave measurements during the Voyager 1 and Jupiter encounters, have revealed the existence of a shadow zone near the magnetic equator, within which kilometric radiation is seldom or weakly observed. In the present paper, further evidence for the presence of the magnetic equatorial shadow zone is presented.

Kurth, W. S.

Ray tracing of Jovian kilometric radiation

Results of computer ray tracing of Jovian kilometric radiation from 56.2 kHz to 1 MHz in a model Jovian magnetosphere with an Io torus are presented. Ray tracing calculations indicate that the Io torus presents a propagation barrier to the radiation and that the Jovian kilometric radiation must be generated in the L-O mode from a source near Jupiter on field lines passing through the Io torus. One effect of the Io torus is to refract the rays away from the magnetic equator forming a shadow zone at radial distances beyond the torus. In general, at radial distances greater than 10 Jovian radii, as the wave frequency increases (greater than 200 kHz) so does the magnetic latitude of the shadow zone. These and other features of the ray tracing calculations are in good qualitative agreement with the observations from the plasma wave receiver and planetary radio astronomy experiment on board both Voyagers 1 and 2.

Green, J. L.

Generation of auroral kilometric radiation and the structure of auroral acceleration region

Generation of auroral kilometric radiation (AKR) in the auroral acceleration region is studied. It is shown that auroral kilometric radiation can be generated by backscattered electrons trapped in the acceleration region via a cyclotron maser process. The parallel electric field in the acceleration region is required to be distributed over 1-2 earth radii. The observed AKR frequency spectrum can be used to estimate the altitude range of the auroral acceleration region. The altitudes of the lower and upper boundaries of the acceleration region determined from the AKR data are respectively approximately 2000 and 9000 km.

Lee, L. C.