Collaborative Research: Equatorial Studies of the Mesopause Region using Meteor Radars

University Of Alaska Fairbanks Campus, Fairbanks AK

Investigators

Abstract

This proposal is for the study of electric field effects on meteor trails in the equatorial region. Additionally, the PIs seek to understand any deviation of the radar scattering properties of a meteor trail from traditional specular reflection processes. These scientific goals require the upgrade and continued operation of an existing meteor radar at Piura, Peru (5S, 81W). The upgrade at this site consists of installing a complete all-sky meteor radar system, so that the angle-of-arrival of meteoric backscatter can be unambiguously determined. In addition, archive data from Christmas Island will be analyzed for meteor winds as well. As a byproduct of this work routine mean wind, tidal amplitudes and phases, and meteor decay statistics will be available to the scientific community via a web server.