NRL RAIDS Experiment Advances Ionospheric Remote Sensing

05/17/2012 07:00 EDT - NRL News Release 65-12r
Contact: Donna McKinney, (202) 767-2541

This image shows a schematic representation of the dayside
ionosphere remote sensing concept, using measurement of
the scattered 83.4 nm emission to infer ionospheric densities.
Measuring the 61.7 nm emission provides direct information
on the intensity of the source region in the lower thermosphere
that is currently only modeled for operational algorithms. 
(Photo: U.S. Naval Research Laboratory) 

Naval Research Laboratory scientists have obtained a first-ever measured altitude profile of a dim extreme-ultraviolet terrestrial airglow emission that provides vital information needed to test and improve the accuracy of advanced techniques for remote sensing of the daytime ionosphere. They have obtained this altitude profile using scans from the Remote Atmospheric and Ionospheric Detection System (RAIDS) experiment. The results of the research are published in theJournal of Geophysical Research, 117, A01316, (2012).

RAIDS temperature measurements have already directly contributed to the Calibration/Validation of the operational (NRL-led) Special Sensor Ultraviolet Limb Imager (SSULI) sensors aboard the DoD Defense Meteorological Satellite Program satellites. This new result from RAIDS will lead to improved operational algorithms for characterizing the vertical structure and global morphology of the ionosphere, the weakly ionized plasma surrounding Earth that affects Navy applications such as high-frequency communication and over-the-horizon radar. ...

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http://www.nrl.navy.mil/media/news-releases/2012/nrl-raids-experiment-advances-ionospheric-remote-sensing