Meteor Radar Studies of the Mesosphere-Lower Thermosphere Using MEDAC

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This proposal seeks funds for meteor radar studies of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere using a meteor echo detection and collection system (MEDAC). The objectives of the work are to provide an understanding of the long period wave motions, including the migrating and non-migrating tides, and their interaction with the large scale wind circulation. The studies will use data collected from the equatorial Pacific wind profiler network , which has been augmented with MEDAC systems that allow the determination of the winds in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. In order to generate the long data sets necessary for this work, an upgrade of the MEDAC sites is required. Because the MEDAC requires the use of a wind profiler that is often not optimized for meteor echo detection, the PIs propose to design a new portable meteor radar system that would stand alone. This new system, as well as the current system, will be augmented with new data analysis techniques utilizing genetic algorithms. A final aspect of the proposed work is to establish a cooperative research program with the University of Adelaide allowing experiments to be done on the Buckland Park radars.