Wave response of the ionosphere to the partial solar eclipse of August 1, 2008

Quasi-periodic variations in the Doppler shift of the HF range frequency at a vertical path and critical frequency of the F ₂ layer caused by wave disturbances in the ionosphere on the day of the partial (the magnitude was about 0.42) solar eclipse and on background days are analyzed. For the spectral analysis, the window Fourier transform, adaptive Fourier transform, and wavelet analysis were jointly used. It is shown that on the day of the eclipse and the background day, spectral characteristics of wave disturbances within the 150–200 km height range differed substantially. The changes in the spectral composition began approximately 30–35 min after the solar eclipse beginning and lasted more than 1.5 h.     

Variations in the amplitude and phase of VLF radiowaves in the ionosphere during the August 1, 2008, solar eclipse

Time variations in the amplitude and phase of signals of the Russian telecommunication station (the frequency is 25 kHz) on the Arkhangelsk—Kharkov path with a length of about 1600 km on the day of the August 1, 2008 solar eclipse (SE) and on the adjacent days are analyzed. Two types of effects are detected. An increase of the signal amplitude by approximately 32% in comparison with the background days and the 2.1 μs time shift of the signal during 2—2.5 h is referred to the first type. Changes in the spectral composition of the quasiperiodic disturbances in the ionosphere presented the second type of the effects. For spectral analysis of the quasiperiodic variations in the amplitude and phase of the radio signal, the window Fourier transform, adaptive Fourier transform, and wavelet transformation were applied simultaneously. In the period of SE and after it, oscillations with periods of 10—15 min (according to the amplitude data) and also about 10 and 18 min (according to the phase data) were intensified. Based on radio signal characteristics, the parameters of ionospheric disturbances are estimated.     

Simultaneous observations of the natural electromagnetic emission in the ELF-VLF range at Kamchatka and in Yakutia during the solar eclipse of August 1, 2008

The effect of the solar eclipse that occurred on August 1, 2008, on the level of the natural electro-magnetic emission signals in the ELF-VLF range, simultaneously observed at Kamchatka and in Yakutsk, and the variations in the amplitude and phase of signals from the VLF radiostations, registered in Yakutsk, has been considered. The VLF radiostations in Krasnodar, Novosibirsk, and Khabarovsk successively emitted signals at frequencies of 11 905, 12 649, and 14 880 Hz. Based on the observations of the signals from these radiostations, it has been established that the signal amplitudes and phases increased by 3–5% and 30°–45° when the signals crossed the lunar shadow region. The synchronous registration of the ELF-VLF noise emission indicated that a bay-like increase and the following decrease in the emission to the background level was observed at both receiving points during the eclipse from ∼1000 to 1130 UT. This effect was registered at frequencies of 0.6–5.6 kHz in Yakutsk and at lower (30–200 Hz) and higher (2.5–11 kHz) frequencies at Kamchatka. In this case the noise emission intensity maximum was observed when the lunar shadow maximally approached the registration point. At higher frequencies, the emission maximum was observed simultaneously at both points (at 1100 UT) but with a delay relative to the maximum at lower frequencies. The possible causes of the appearance of the solar eclipse effects in the natural ELF-VLF emission are considered.     

Studies of the solar corona based on solar eclipse observations at IZMIRAN

From 1945 to 2009, fellows of IZMIRAN participated in 24 expeditions devoted to observations of solar eclipses. The following characteristics of the solar corona were mainly studied: the emission structure, intensity, and polarization; the line and continuous spectra; etc. This paper reviews the most important results, which promoted the development of the present-day concepts of the solar corona structure and physical properties.     

Solar eclipse of August 1, 2008, above Kharkov: 1. Results of incoherent scatter observations

The observation results of the effects in the geospace plasma during a partially (magnitude ～0.42) solar eclipse are presented. The experimental data were obtained with an incoherent scatter radar of the Institute of the Ionosphere (near Kharkov). During the eclipse, the density at the F2 layer maximum decreased by 32%, the foF2 critical frequency decreased by 17.5%, and the altitude of the F2 layer maximum increased insignificantly. At altitudes of 290–680 km, the electron density decreased by ～25%. During the eclipse, the electron and ion temperature decreased by 70–180 and 0–140 K, respectively, at altitudes of 190–490 km. Near the eclipse main phase, the plasma velocity vertical component decreased by 10–45 m/s at altitudes of 200–470 km, respectively. At the time of the eclipse main phase, the hydrogen ion fractional density increased by 50% as compared to the reference day at altitudes of 450–650 km.     

Solar eclipse of August 1, 2008, over Kharkov: 3. calculation results and discussion

The calculation results of parameters of thermal and dynamical processes in the near-Earth plasma during the partial solar eclipse of August 1, 2008, over Kharkov are presented. The calculations showed that during the eclipse there occurred a decrease in the neutral temperature by approximately 17–40 K within the height range 250–350 km, respectively. At heights of 210–580 km, the eclipse resulted in an increase in the density, total plasma flux, and the flux of particles by tens of percentage points due to ambipolar diffusion. The paper presents the results of a comparative analysis of the effects in the ionospheric plasma during the partial eclipses over Kharkov of August 11, 1999; May 31, 2003; October 3, 2005; March 29, 2006; and August 1, 2008. General regularities in eclipse effects are noted.     

The ionosphere over Genova during the solar eclipse of February 15, 1961

Summary The behaviour of the ionosphere over Genova during the solar eclipse of February 15, 1961 is investigated. For theE-layer the effect was very marked, but the value obtained for the recombination coefficient is above normal. The effect of the eclipse was also observed on theF2 layer; however, the behaviour here appears affected by the simultaneous occurrence of an ionospheric perturbation. Finally, the maximum reduction of the ionospheric absorption on 2 and 3 Mc/s during the eclipse was found to be of the order of about 12 db.This report belongs to a set of investigations on geophysical effects of the solar eclipse of February 15th, 1961 carried out by the «Istituto Geofisico, Università di Genova», and made possible through a financial support of the «Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche».     

Disturbances in the ionosphere and atmosphere caused by the solar eclipse of August 11, 1999

Results of comparing ionospheric radio noise at wavelength of 2 m at midlatitudes to the data of the ionospheric vertical sounding during the partial phase of the solar eclipse of August 11, 1999, are presented. Disturbances in the ionospheric layers, radio noise of the ionospheric plasma, and variations and fluctuations in the atmospheric pressure at the Earth surface during the eclipse are considered. The parameters of the Lamb wave, which propagated with velocity of 300 m/s from the region of the total phase of the eclipse are determined. The Lamb wave characteristics in the summer midlatitude and auroral ionosphere have been compared.     

Solar eclipse of August 1, 2008, above Kharkov: 2. Observation results of wave disturbances in the ionosphere

Quasi-periodic variations in the power of incoherent scattered signals, caused by wave disturbances of the electron concentration in the ionosphere, are analyzed for the day of a partial solar eclipse and for a background day. The windowed and adaptive Fourier transforms and the wavelet transform are used for spectral analysis. The spectral parameters of the wave disturbances at altitudes of 100–500 km in the 10–120 min period range differed significantly on the day of the solar eclipse and on the background day. Variations in the spectrum began near the onset of the phase of maximum disk occultation and continued no less than 2 h. The amplitude of time variations N was 2 × 10⁹–4 × 10¹⁰ m^?3, and the relative amplitude was 0.10–0.15. Wave disturbances have been compared for five solar eclipses; the comparison shows a noticeable variation in the spectrum of the wave disturbances during these events.     

Testing IR flux during solar eclipse

A Ridgeley, G Grayer, D Mehmet and B Sheen report on a further experiment on IR flux during the solar eclipse in Lusaka, 2001.     

Observations of VLF atmospherics spectra during the solar eclipse of March 20, 2015

Based on the data obtained by the instruments of the Lovozero high-latitude observatory, the amplitude-frequency characteristics of atmospherics during the solar eclipse of March 20, 2015 were constructed. It was shown that no significant changes (beyond the limits of natural deviation) in the spectra of atmospherics were observed during the eclipse.     

Micrometeorological measurements in Nigeria during the total solar eclipse of 29 March, 2006

The total solar eclipse of 29 March, 2006 which was visible at Ibadan (7.55°N, 4.56°E), south-western Nigeria was utilized to document atmospheric surface-layer effects of the eclipse for the first time in Nigeria. The meteorological parameters measured are global radiation, net radiation, wind speed (at different heights), atmospheric pressure and soil temperature (5, 10 and 30 cm), moisture and heat flux and rainfall. The results revealed remarkable dynamic atmospheric effects. The observations showed that the incoming solar radiation, net radiation and air temperature were significantly affected.There was an upsurge of wind speed just before the first contact of the eclipse followed by a very sharp decrease in wind speed due to the cooling and stabilization of the atmospheric boundary layer. The atmospheric pressure lags the eclipse maximum by 1 h 30 min, while the soil temperature at 5 and 10 cm remain constant during the maximum phase of the eclipse.     

Shadow bands during the total solar eclipse of 26 February 1998

We have recorded shadow bands just before and just after the total phase of the solar eclipse of 26 February 1998, using four silicon photodiodes on the corners of a square 105 mm side. At two earlier eclipses, 11 July 1991, 3 November 1994, recordings were made using two silicon photodiodes separated by 100 mm. The analyses of these earlier eclipses have already been published in detail, and therefore here we concentrate on the analysis of the recordings made on 26 February 1998. Samples of the time series are presented, along with cross-correlation functions and power spectra. The power spectra are broadly in accord with the shadow band theory of Codona (Codona, C., 1986. The scintillation theory of eclipse shadow bands. Astron. Astrophys. 164, 415–427). This is also the case for the two earlier eclipses, but there are instructive differences between the three occasions.     

2009年7月22日日全食期间湖北沙洋地区电离层扰动分析

发生在2009年7月22日亚太地区的日全食,为人们研究电离层扰动提供了一次难得的机会.基于沙洋地区采集的高频(1 Hz)GPS数据,通过对日食当天与前后几天电离层VTEC(Vertical Total Electron Content)的变化分析,结果显示日食期间电离层VTEC含量均呈现出一种先下降再上升的“水槽”变化趋势,且VTEC下降达到2～5 TECU,下降幅度达33.1％,VTEC的最小值与食甚时刻延迟为25.2～147.6 s.在日全食后期有中等强度的磁暴发生,与日食相互重合叠加共同对电离层VTEC变化造成影响,使得VTEC变化明显异于前后几天,最后定量的分析了磁暴对VTEC的影响.     

Effects of the August 11, 1999 total solar eclipse as deduced from total electron content measurements at the GPS network

We present the results derived from measuring fundamental parameters of the ionospheric response to the August 11, 1999 total solar eclipse. Our study is based on using the data from about 100 GPS stations located in the neighborhood of the eclipse totality phase in Europe. The eclipse period was characterized by a low level of geomagnetic disturbance (D_st-variation from −10 to −20 nT), which alleviated significantly the problem of detecting the ionospheric response to the eclipse. Our analysis revealed a well-defined effect of a decrease (depression) of the total electron content (TEC) for all GPS stations. The delay between minimum TEC values with respect to the totality phase near the eclipse path increased gradually from 4 min in Greenwich longitude (10:40 UT, LT) to 8 min at the longitude 16° (12:09 LT). The depth and duration of the TEC depression were found to be 0.2–0.3 TECU and 60 min, respectively. The results obtained in this study are in good agreement with earlier measurements and theoretical estimates.     

Ionospheric behavior over Europe during the solar eclipse of 3 October 2005

An annular eclipse occurred over Europe in the morning hours of 3 October 2005. The well-defined obscuration function of the solar radiation during the eclipse provided a good opportunity to study the ionospheric/thermospheric response to solar radiation changes. Since the peak electron density behavior of the ionospheric F2 layer follows the local balance of plasma production, loss and transport, the ionospheric plasma redistribution processes significantly affect the shape of the electron density profile. These processes are discussed here based on a comparison of vertical incidence sounding (VS) and vertical total electron content (TEC) data above-selected ionosonde stations in Europe. The equivalent slab thickness, derived with a time resolution of 10 min, provides relatively good information on the variation of the electron density profile during the eclipse. The computations reveal an increased width of the ionosphere around the maximum phase. As indicated by the available measurements over Spain, the photo production is significantly reduced during the event leading to a slower increase of the total ionization in comparison with the neighboring days. The supersonic motion of the Moon's cool shadow through the atmosphere may generate atmospheric gravity waves that propagate upward and are detectable as traveling ionospheric disturbances at ionospheric heights. High-frequency (HF) Doppler shift spectrograms were recorded during the eclipse showing a distinct disturbance along the eclipse path. Whereas the ionosonde measurements at the Ebro station/Spain in the vicinity of the eclipse path reveal the origin of the wave activity in the lower thermosphere below about 180 km altitude, the similar observations at Pruhonice/Czech Republic provide arguments to localize the origin of the abnormal waves in the middle atmosphere well below the ionospheric heights. Although ionosonde and HF Doppler measurements show enhanced wave activity, the TEC data analysis does not, which is an indication that the wave amplitudes are too small for detecting them via this interpolation method. The total ionization reduces up to about 30% during the event. A comparison with similar observations from the solar eclipse of 11 August 1999 revealed a quite different ionospheric behavior at different latitudes, a fact that needs further investigation.     

Propagation of radio waves reflected from the ionosphere during a solar eclipse

Summary The article first describes in chronological order the observations on the propagation of radio waves during the solar eclipses, and the development of the conflicting results on the similar transmissions of radio signals. The general theory of the absorption of radio waves in the ionosphere is briefly described and therefrom a method is derived to estimate the variation of the absorption of obliquely incident radio waves during a solar eclipse.The variation of field-strength can be studied in terms of the relationship between the vertical incident equivalent frequency of the signals and the critical frequencies of the ionospheric layers at the regions of reflection. The total absorption of radio waves consists of the non-deviative absorption in theD region and the deviative absorption in the higher layers of the ionosphere. During the eclipse, theD region absorption decreases in phase with the progress of the eclipse, but the variation of deviative absorption may differ in each observation. The deviative absorption is large when the equivalent frequency is close to the critical frequency of the layer reflecting the waves or of the layer just penetrated by the waves. The changes in the deviative absorption during an eclipse can be estimated on the basis of the variation of the critical frequencies of the ionospheric layers. The resultant changes in the total absorption during a solar eclipse may thus be estimated. The different types of field strength variation expected during an eclipse are given.The observations of the vertical incident absorption of radio waves and the field strength variations of obliquely incident continuous wave radio signals during the solar eclipse are described and the changes are explained on the basis of the above theory.     

Numerical modelling of spectral sky radiance during a total solar eclipse

Ground-based observations of the spectral sky radiance within the totality region during a total solar eclipse are of significant interest because the contribution from direct and single scattered light from the solar disk is eliminated. In the present paper, we develop a numerical model of the spectral sky radiance during totality, evaluate the contribution of double scattered sunlight to the sky radiance at totality and compare it to solar corona emissions. The results show that the single scattered coronal light is the major contaminant in ground-based observations of the corona, opposite to what was believed before. For observation directions outside the corona the double scattered sun radiation dominates over the single scattered coronal light.     

Observational effort to record Fresnel patterns during a total solar eclipse

Summary The observation of Fresnel diffraction patterns at 2nd and 3rd contact and efforts to correlate the time elements of a total solar eclipse at low elevation are discussed. The measurements were intended to determine atmospheric refraction at three optical wavelengths. A laboratory model of the system sun-moon-earth was employed for testing the recording instruments at the fast response times that are necessary for such observations.

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Zusammenfassung Diskutiert werden die Vorbereitungen zur Beobachtung von Fresnelschen Beugungsstreifen im Mondschatten, wenn 2. und 3. Kontakt einer Sonnenfisternis in die Sonnenaufgangszone fallen (streifender Lichteinfalt). Bei Kenntnis des Mondrandes kann man die Auswertung der Beugungsfiguren mit den Konjunktionszeiten korrelieren. Vergleiche mit den errechneten Ephemeriden ermöglichen eine Bestimmung der atmosphärischen Refraktion. Ein Modell diente zur Prüfung der Beobachtungsapparaturen.