Auroral Thermosphere with Nitrogen-Ion (N2+) Lidar and Advanced Modular Incoherent Scatter Radar (AMISR)

北极热层和e区电离层的采样采用三种仪器，一种新型的氮离子（N2+）共振激光雷达，先进的模块化非相干散射雷达（AMISR）和阿拉斯加Poker Flat的子午线扫描光度计。将测量结果与美国空军多物种电离层化学模型进行同化和建模，得到一组封闭的e区连续性方程，从中确定了[O2+]、[NO+]和[NO]的数量密度，以及从激光雷达测量直接确定的80-300公里范围内N2+密度的第一个距离分辨剖面。这些N2+离子数据提供了比单独从非相干散射雷达（ISR）体离子信息中提取的更准确的e区电离率估计，并使用NO数据研究了极光NO的生命周期。该研究使用了新的仪器技术，在极光e区实现了前所未有的二维离子形态采样（使用AMISR的电子束转向），并使用391纳米的N2+共振实现了前所未有的N2+高度剖面测量。

The Arctic thermosphere and E-region ionosphere is sampled with three instruments, a novel nitrogen-ion (N2+) resonant lidar, the Advanced Modular Incoherent Scatter radar (AMISR), and a meridian scanning photometer at Poker Flat Alaska. The measurements are assimilated and modeled with the United States Air Force multispecies ionospheric chemistry model to produce a closed set of E-region continuity equations from which the number densities of [O2+], [NO+], and [NO] are determined in addition to the first range-resolved profile of N2+ density from 80-300 kilometer that is determined directly from the lidar measurements. These N2+ ion data provide more accurate E-region ionization rate estimates than can be extracted from the incoherent scatter radar (ISR) bulk ion information alone, and the NO data are used to investigate the life cycle of auroral NO. The research uses new instrument technology to achieve unprecedented sampling of two-dimensional ion morphology in the auroral E-region (using the electronic beam steering of AMISR), and unprecedented measurements of the N2+ altitude profile using an N2+ resonance at 391 nanometer.