CEDAR: Probing the Upper E-region and Lower F-region Neutral Winds Using Ionospheric Heating

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The goal of this proposal is to examine the response of thermospheric neutral winds to space weather. Local winds in the 150-250 km range are very difficult to measure owing to the absence of sustained optical emissions over this altitude range. The PI therefore proposes to artificially stimulate such emissions by directly heating the ionosphere using very high-power, high-frequency radio waves. These emissions will be detected by an instrument called a Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI), that characterizes the properties of light emitted by molecules in motion. The heating of the ionosphere will take place at the High frequency Active Auroral Radar Project (HAARP) facility in Alaska. Two FPIs will be located within 320 km from the HAARP facility, in order to resolve the horizontal wind vector. Broader impacts of this proposal include Ph.D. training at UAF, STEM outreach to local schools, and raising the profile of the HAARP heating facility following its transition from military to UAF management.The specific goals of this project are to 1. Determine winds with high vertical (10 km) and temporal (several minutes) resolution through coordinated FPI and HAARP observing activity 2. Examine altitude and temporal variations in these winds under both artificial (HAARP-induced) and auroral conditions. The intellectual merits of the proposal lie in demonstrating the new wind recovery methods, and in resolving their altitudinal and temporal variability.