A sudden vanishing of the ionospheric F region due to the launch of Skylab

Physics

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F Region, Ionospheric Electron Density, Satellite Observation, Skylab Program, Sudden Ionospheric Disturbances, Environmental Monitoring, Exhaust Gases, Faraday Effect, Gaseous Diffusion, Ion Atom Interactions, Ion Recombination, Molecular Ions

Scientific paper

Routine Faraday rotation observations of the VHF signal from the geostationary satellite ATS 3 made at Sagamore Hill (Massachusetts) revealed that an unusually large and rapid decay in the ionospheric total electron content (TEC) occurred near 1240 EST on May 14, 1973. The onset of the TEC disturbance occurred within 10 min of the launch of NASA's Skylab workshop by a Saturn 5 rocket. As the rocket moved at F region heighs, the burning second-stage engines passed within 150 km of the Sagamore Hill ray path to ATS 3. A detailed analysis of the aeronomic reactions initiated by the constituents of the exhaust field revealed that the F2 region plasma experienced a devastating loss process as the plume expanded. The specific mechanism involved was the rapid ion-atom interchange reactions between the ionospheric O(+) and the hydrogen and water vapor molecules in the plume, followed by dissociative recombination of the molecular ions.

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