Tropospheric and ionospheric phase perturbations and Doppler frequency shift effects

The temporal and spatial variations of the indices of refraction, i.e., dielectric constant, in the tropospheric and ionospheric media induce phase perturbations in radio signals propagated in an earth-space transmission system. Using ionospheric phase scintillation spectral data, estimates are made of the magnitude of ionospheric integrated phase noise and phase noise density at specific frequencies. The refraction phenomenon in the troposphere and ionosphere causes an error in the Doppler frequency shift of radio transmissions emitted from a nonstationary satellite and received on the ground. Estimates are made of the Doppler error for various atmospheric and solar-geophysical conditions and are applicable for frequencies in the VHF-UHF range and above.