Rocket Meeting Summary
Defined Science mission to focus on the altitude behavior of high-latitude E region electrodynamics and its consequences on the energy transfer processes (ie., Joule heating rates, mechanical energy transfer rates, and load characteristics).
- A properly equipped rocket salvo and the complementary ground-based measurements provided by the Sondrestrom radar facility will result in the successful and complete description of the electrodynamic behavior at high latitudes occurring amongst the neutral winds, currents, conductivities, ion-neutral collisions, ion velocities, and electric fields
- This study alone will address important questions as to how the electrodynamic energy is distributed through the conductive ionosphere
- Additional measurements of composition and temperature would help address the impact of this energy transfer on the thermospheric system
- Measurements made during sunlit summer conditions and dark winter conditions will determine the extreme conditions under which the electrodynamic coupling behaves.