Proposed Continued Operation of an ELF/VLF Radiometer at Arrival Heights, Antarctica

在南极洲到达高地监测极低频/甚低频无线电噪声(频率范围在5赫兹到32千赫)的计划的这三年的延续，将把观测记录延长到25年以上，并将允许对噪声统计数据进行更准确的估计和限制。辐射计第一次安装在现在的位置是在1984-2005年的南半球夏季，它记录了南极的极低频/甚低频噪声，其连续性和持续时间都是史无前例的。与这一系统并行的是，格陵兰岛Sondrestromfjord和斯坦福大学校园目前正在运行相同的系统。由于低频/甚低频无线电噪声的主要来源是发生在热带地区的雷暴，这三个系统对发生在热带地区的雷暴活动提供了互补的看法。然后，长期统计数据可以提供有关全球变化的独立信息。到达高地记录中的低本底进一步允许确定舒曼共振，即存在于地球电磁腔(地球表面和电离层之间的空间)中的准驻波。这些共振频率的时间变化可能与电离层特性的变化有关。由于进行长期观测非常困难，特别是在偏远地区，随着辐射计的继续运行，到达高度测量的科学价值正在增加。

This three year continuation of a program to monitor ELF/VLF radio noise (frequencies in the range 5 Hz to 32 kHz) at Arrival Heights, Antarctica, will extend the observational record to more than twenty-five years, and will allow more precise estimates of and limits on noise statistics. The radiometer was first installed at its present location during the austral summer of 1984-5 and has provided a record of ELF/VLF noise in the Antarctic that is unprecedented in its continuity and duration. In parallel with this system, identical ones are currently in operation at Sondrestromfjord, Greenland, and on the Stanford University campus. These additional systems provide comparison data for the arctic and for mid-latitudes.Since the predominant sources of ELF/VLF radio noise are thunderstorms occurring in the tropical regions, these three systems provide complementary views of the thunderstorm activity occurring in the tropics. The long-term statistics can then provide independent information about global change. The low background in the Arrival Heights record further allows the determination of Schumann resonances, quasi-standing waves that exist in the Earth's electromagnetic cavity (the space between the surface of the Earth and the Ionosphere). Temporal changes in these resonant frequencies can be related to variations in the characteristics of the ionosphere. Because of the great difficulty of making long-term observations, particularly at remote locations, the Arrival Heights measurements are increasing in scientific value as the radiometer continues in operation.