Collaborative Research: Using Ground-based Observations of ULF Waves at Cusp Latitudes on Svalbard to Probe Earth's Space Environment

提供资金支持在斯瓦尔巴群岛建造和安装一个由四个搜索线圈磁力计（感应天线）组成的密集阵列，用于研究地球空间环境。 斯瓦尔巴群岛已经是众多光学传感器和极光成像仪，包括EISCAT和SuperDARN在内的多个雷达的所在地，并且是IMAGE磁通门磁力仪阵列中最北端的站点。 之所以在斯瓦尔巴特群岛安装这一广泛的仪器阵列，主要是因为它是北方半球唯一一个容易进入的地点，在冬至期间，磁层尖点的电离层足点一直处于黑暗之中。 来自尖点区域的磁力线映射到地球磁层的外边界，在那里它与太阳风和行星际磁场相互作用。 因此，位于尖点区域下方的地面站可以提供关于太阳风的能量和动量首次进入地球电离层的信息。 但是，斯瓦尔巴群岛目前没有探测线圈磁力计阵列。 部署一个紧密间隔的二维搜索线圈仪器阵列，每个都有准确的GPS定时，将允许PI确定在不同地点观察到的信号之间的相位差，从而确定明显的传播方向和推断波源位置。 此外，在斯瓦尔巴特群岛的几个地点，特别是在冬季黑暗的条件下，存在着丰富的其他仪器阵列，可以提供在任何其他尖纬度地点无法获得的关于电离层区域的详细信息。这项研究将有助于我们了解和预测空间天气现象，这些现象可能导致停电和增加管道腐蚀，对卫星造成辐射损害，并在无线电通信中造成问题。

Funds are provided to support the construction and installation of a closely-spaced array of four search coil magnetometers (induction antennas) on Svalbard for studies of Earth's space environment. The Svalbard archipelago is already the site of numerous optical sensors and auroral imagers, multiple radars including EISCAT and SuperDARN, and is the location of the northernmost stations in the IMAGE array of fluxgate magnetometers. This extensive array of instrumentation has been installed on Svalbard primarily because it is the only readily accessible site in the northern hemisphere at which the ionospheric footpoint of the magnetospheric cusp is consistently in darkness during the winter solstice. Magnetic field lines from the cusp region map to the outer boundary of Earth's magnetosphere, where it interacts with the solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field. Because of this, ground stations located under the cusp region can provide information about the first entry of energy and momentum from the solar wind to Earth's ionosphere. There is currently no search coil magnetometer array on Svalbard, however. Deployment of a closely-spaced two-dimensional array of search coil instruments, each with accurate GPS timing, will allow the PIs to determine phase differences between signals observed at different sites, and hence determine apparent propagation directions and infer wave source locations. In addition, the presence of a rich array of other instrumentation at several sites on Svalbard, especially under winter dark conditions, can provide detailed information on ionospheric regions that is not available at any other cusp latitude site. This study will contribute to our understanding of, and ability to predict, space weather phenomena that can cause power outages and increase pipeline corrosion, produce radiation damage to satellites, and create problems in radio communications, amongst other problems.