Development of ground and space based instrumentation for middle and upper atmospheric studies

Westerhoff, John Marshall

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/125501 Copy

Description

Title

Development of ground and space based instrumentation for middle and upper atmospheric studies

Author(s)

Westerhoff, John Marshall

Issue Date

2024-05-14

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Swenson, Gary

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Levin, Deborah

Committee Member(s)

• Dragic, Peter
• Lembeck, Michael

Department of Study

Aerospace Engineering

Discipline

Aerospace Engineering

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Degree Level

Dissertation

Keyword(s)

• lidar
• remote sensing
• cubesat
• photometer
• atmosphere
• gravity wave
• airglow
• nightglow
• mesosphere
• telescope

Abstract

The first objective of this research effort is to investigate the use of a high power-aperture Rayleigh lidar to measure neutral density and temperature in the upper atmosphere, into the lower thermosphere (>90 km). The scientific interest with this system is to obtain measurements of atmospheric tides, planetary and gravity wave amplitudes and phase in the lower thermosphere. Measurement of waves into the lower thermosphere is accomplished using Rayleigh lidar methods with high power-aperture (PA) products using new technology lasers and large collecting apertures, resulting in PA of 65-540 Wm2. This dissertation describes the simulation of high PA Rayleigh lidar systems and estimates their capability to measure gravity waves and tides in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. Both traditional backscatter and bistatic (imaging) methods are simulated. Simulations show that substantive measurements can be achieved for characterizing gravity waves at altitudes >90 km and atmospheric tides at altitudes >100 km for this lidar system. Measurements of density and temperature to 10% precision are possible up to 115-130 km. A research and development effort funded by the NSF was pursued at the University of Illinois to develop a high-power Rayleigh lidar and explore the capabilities and challenges of implementing a high power-aperture (PA) Rayleigh lidar capable of measuring the neutral atmosphere at altitudes >110 km. Simulations comparing the capabilities of monostatic and bistatic lidar configurations for a high-PA lidar system were first performed, followed by a development effort to test a high-PA Rayleigh lidar. This dissertation details the first-light results of this lidar experiment, which achieves neutral atmosphere measurements up to 93 km altitude, the highest measurement to date for a bistatic Rayleigh lidar, based on a review of the literature. Methodologies for significantly improving these results in future studies are also discussed. This research effort demonstrates the capability of a bistatic Rayleigh lidar configuration for middle and upper atmospheric studies, which enables the use of new high-power, high pulse repetition frequency and continuous wave lasers that are unsuited for monostatic lidar systems. The potential of high power-aperture Rayleigh lidar in exploring the middle and upper atmosphere is shown in Gardner (2012), which simulates the performance of such a system using a 325W laser and an 8-meter telescope for a power-aperture product of 16,336 Wm2. The second objective of this research effort is to design an instrument to measure atmospheric gravity waves in the mesosphere as part of the Lower Atmosphere/Ionosphere Coupling Experiment (LAICE) CubeSat mission. Measurements of atmospheric gravity waves are obtained by remote sensing of mesospheric airglows during the nighttime portion of the orbit. This instrument is designed to collect measurements to determine intrinsic wave parameters of observed atmospheric gravity waves. These derived wave parameters must be of sufficient quality for coupling studies that are the scientific goal of the LAICE mission. The instrument must also meet its performance requirements in the restrictive mass, volume, power, and communication limits of a CubeSat, which in this case is a 6U CubeSat to accommodate flying two scientific payloads. An in-situ measurement instrument payload was developed at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, while the remote sensing photometer instrument payload and the CubeSat bus were developed at the University of Illinois. This dissertation details the design of the photometer instrument for the LAICE mission and the expected performance with respect to derivation of mesospheric gravity wave parameters from airglow measurements. The LAICE mission is a groundbreaking CubeSat mission in low Earth orbit focused on understanding how atmospheric gravity waves generated by weather systems in the lower atmosphere propagate and deliver energy and momentum into the mesosphere, lower thermosphere, and ionosphere. These waves are an important facet of atmospheric physics, but their effects in the thermosphere and ionosphere are under-explored. They strongly influence the dynamics of the media through which they travel via momentum and energy deposition at altitudes well above their source regions, and they can seed the development of plasma instabilities that scintillate and disrupt radio propagation. LAICE will focus on these waves and attempt to connect their causes and effects in three widely different altitude ranges, substantially adding to our knowledge of a critical coupling process between disparate atmospheric regions.

Graduation Semester

2024-08

Type of Resource

Thesis

Handle URL

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/125501

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2024, John Westerhoff

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