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Hussey et al. 2000
Hussey, G.C., Meek, C.E., André, D., Manson, A.H., Sofko, G.J. and Hall, C.M. (2000). A comparison of northern hemisphere winds using SuperDARN meteor trail and MF radar wind measurements. Journal of Geophysical Research 105: doi: 10.1029/2000JD900272. issn: 0148-0227.

The main purpose of the Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) is to use paired radars to deduce the F-region convection from Doppler measurements of backscatter seen at large ranges, typically beyond ~900 km. Nearer to each HF radar, the nearest ranges at ~165--400 km are dominated by meteor trail echoes. Once formed, the motion of these meteor trails is normally controlled by neutral winds in the 80--110 km altitude range. By combining the line-of-sight velocities from all 16 receiver beams (~52¿ in azimuth) of a given SuperDARN radar, it is possible to determine the full horizontal wind vector field over the meteor trail height range. Elevation angles are also measured using an interferometer mode and as such height information can, in principle, be obtained from the combined range and elevation angle data. A comparison with neutral wind measurements from a colocated (Saskatoon, Canada) MF wind radar indicates good agreement between the two radar systems at heights of ~95 km. Based on these detailed comparisons, a simple common method for determining two-dimensional winds for all SuperDARN radars, which have extensive longitudinal coverage, was developed. Comparisons with other systems used for dynamical studies of tides and planetary waves are desirable and prove to be essential to obtain a good SuperDARN neutral wind motion analysis. The MF radars at Saskatoon and Troms, Norway, are located near the western and eastern ends of the Northern Hemisphere network of six SuperDARN radars. Comparisons between the two types of radars for two seasonal intervals (September and December) show that the SuperDARN radars provide good longitudinal coverage of tides in support of the more detailed MF radar data. The two systems complement each other effectively.

BACKGROUND DATA FILES

Abstract

Keywords
Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics, Middle atmosphere dynamics (0341, 0342), Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics, Waves and tides, Planetology, Solid Surface Planets, Atmospheres—structure and dynamics, Radio Science, Radar atmospheric physics
Journal
Journal of Geophysical Research
http://www.agu.org/journals/jb/
Publisher
American Geophysical Union
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