Automated detection of satellite contamination in incoherent scatter radar spectra

• Main Authors: Porteous, J., Samson, A. M., Berrington, K. A., Mccrea, I. W.
• Other Authors: School of Science and Mathematics, Sheffield Hallam University, Space Science and Technology Department Didcot (RAL Space), STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL), Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)-Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2003
• Subjects: [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean; Atmosphere; [SDU.STU]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences; Svalbard; EISCAT
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-00317063; https://hal.science/hal-00317063/document; https://hal.science/hal-00317063/file/angeo-21-1177-2003.pdf

International audience Anomalous ion line spectra have been identified in many experiments. Such spectra are defined as deviations from the standard symmetric "double-humped" spectra derived from incoherent scatter radar echoes from the upper atmosphere. Some anomalous spectra ? where there are sharp enhancements of power over restricted height ranges ? have been attributed to satellite contamination in the beam path. Here we outline a method for detecting such contamination, and review in detail a few cases where the method enables the identification of anomalous spectra as satellite echoes, subsequently ascribed to specific orbital objects. The methods used here to identify such satellites provide a useful way of distinguishing anomalous spectra due to satellites from those of geophysical origin. Analysis of EISCAT Svalbard Radar data reveals that an average of 8 satellites per hour are found to cross the beam. Based on a relatively small sample of the data set, it appears that at least half of the occurrences of anomalous spectra are caused by satellite contamination rather than being of geophysical origin.