Application of matched filtering and parameter estimation technique to low latitude whistlers

Abstract

The Matched Filtering and Parameter Estimation (MFPE) technique developed for the analysis of mid/high latitude whistlers has been extended to analyze whistlers recorded at low latitude ground station Varanasi, India (geomagnetic latitude 14° 55′ N, longitude 153° 59′ E, L=1.07). Some of the whistlers recorded at Varanasi are found to have propagated along higher L-values ( L>2). It has been argued that these whistlers after exiting the ionosphere have propagated towards the equator in the Earth-ionosphere waveguide. Trace splitting is observed below the nose frequency and above 2.0 kHz, a result in agreement with mid/high latitude whistlers. The trace splitting structure revealed by MFPE demonstrates the complexities of whistler wave propagation and is quite helpful in deriving information about high resolution features of the duct structure. The banded features observed in the dynamic spectrum are clearly seen in the output of the matched filter. The observed banded features may arise due to interference between the wavelets propagating in the duct/waveguide.