About the study of the radio wave propagation in the turbulent solar plasma with Mars-2, 7 and Venera 10
Abstract
Radio-wave propagation in the solar-wind plasma was investigated before and after Mars-2, Mars-7, and Venera-10 superior conjunction. It is found that the moving turbulent solar-wind plasma produces amplitude and frequency fluctuations and spectral broadening of monochromatic radio waves. When the sun-earth-spacecraft angle decreases from 6 to 0.6 deg, the bandwith of spectral broadening increases from 0.3 Hz to 330 Hz. The region from 2.5 to 4 deg is specific since the bandwith of spectral broadening is independent of sun-earth-spacecraft angle. The spectrum of frequency fluctuations is a power law with an index of 0.7 + or - 0.2. The temporal frequency spectra of the amplitude have two distinct regions. In the low-frequency region the spectral density is approximately constant. The high-frequency portion of the amplitude spectrum follows a power law with an index of 2.8 + or 0.4. The turbulence characteristics of the solar-wind plasma are determined from the experimental data obtained. The three-dimensional electron-density spectrum is found to be close to the Kolmogorov-Oboukhov spectrum. The solar-wind density fluctuations decline very steeply with heliocentric distance, but in the distance interval from 7 million to 12 million km there is a region of enhanced turbulence which could be caused by blast waves.
- Publication:
-
Prague International Astronautical Federation Congress
- Pub Date:
- September 1977
- Bibcode:
- 1977prag.iafcQ....I
- Keywords:
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- Plasma Turbulence;
- Radio Transmission;
- Shock Waves;
- Solar Wind;
- Spaceborne Astronomy;
- Wave Propagation;
- Electron Density (Concentration);
- Mars Probes;
- Radio Spectra;
- Venera Satellites;
- Solar Physics