Collaborative Research: CEDAR: Identifying Sources of Mid-latitude Traveling Ionospheric Disturbances

起源于低层大气源的重力波通过波的耗散或破碎会导致背景流的大幅度加速。加速产生具有较长波长的次级GW，使它们能够向上传播到电离层中。在这里，通过与电离层等离子体的相互作用，它们以红线（630 nm）图像中的光学特征的形式可见，并且通常被称为行进电离层扰动（TID）。 一个广泛的阵列的光学成像仪将被用来三角测量低层大气源的F区域全球Ws，量化的全球Ws的数值模拟相同的光学签名，然后使用这种量化的射线跟踪二次全球Ws，以揭示其高度分布的动量沉积。这项工作将连接耦合路径上的两个关键点：从低层大气源到热层中上部的动量沉积。该项目将包括对农村中学的学生进行宣传，这些学校将部署这些仪器。它还将为本科生提供参与数据分析和解释的机会。

Gravity waves (GWs) originating from lower atmospheric sources can lead to large accelerations of the background flow through wave dissipation or breaking. The accelerations produce secondary GWs with longer wavelengths, allowing them to propagate farther upward into the ionosphere. Here, through interaction with the ionospheric plasma, they are visible in the form of optical signatures in red line (630 nm) images, and are often referred to as traveling ionospheric disturbances (TIDs). A broad array of optical imagers will be used to triangulate the lower atmospheric sources for F region GWs, quantifying the GWs by numerically modeling the same optical signatures, and then using this quantification to ray-trace the secondary GWs to reveal their altitude profile of momentum deposition. This effort will connect two critical points on the coupled path: from the lower atmospheric source to momentum deposition in the mid to upper thermosphere. This project will include outreach to students at rural high schools where the instruments will be deployed. It will also provide undergraduate students opportunities to participate in data analysis and interpretation.