Haystack Observatory Research Articles

Characterizing Plasma Peak Density Thickness in the Ionosphere: A Single‐Site Multi‐Instrument Study

AbstractThis paper introduces the Peak Density Thickness (PDT) formalism, a novel approach to representing the F2 layer's vertical electron density profile in the ionosphere. It diverges from the conventional “pointed‐peak” model by suggesting a “broad‐peak” or “flat‐nose” profile where plasma density remains constant within an altitude interval χ. This theory is backed by independent observations, including a comprehensive data set from the Millstone Hill Incoherent Scatter Radar at the MIT Haystack observatory, spanning from 1993 to 2023, which illustrates the presence and diurnal variation of PDT. A single‐day intensive cross‐verification using Digisonde Portable Sounder DPS4D soundings of the sub‐peak ionosphere has shown remarkable agreement in the measurements of the lower boundary of the χ interval and the peak density. This study suggests incorporating the flat‐nose section χ into the F‐region profile formalism. Such a shift could improve the accuracy of topside specifications derived from ground‐based ionosonde measurements, enhancing our understanding of ionospheric plasma dynamics.

The Haystack Telescope as an Astronomical Instrument

The Haystack Telescope is an antenna with a diameter of 37 m and an elevation-dependent surface accuracy of ≤100μm that is capable of millimeter-wave observations. The radome-enclosed instrument serves as a radar sensor for space situational awareness, with about one-third of the time available for research by MIT Haystack Observatory. Ongoing testing with the K-band (18–26 GHz) and W-band receivers (currently 85–93 GHz) is preparing the inclusion of the telescope into the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) array and the use as a single-dish research telescope. Given its geographic location, the addition of the Haystack Telescope to current and future versions of the EHT array would substantially improve the image quality.

Progress on the Haystack Observatory Postprocessing System

The Haystack Observatory Postprocessing System (HOPS) is a multipurpose tool for post-correlation calibration and data analysis in Very-Long Baseline Interferometry experiments. The requirements on stations, baselines, and bandwidth for the Next Generation Event Horizon Telescope (ngEHT) have motivated a significant refactoring of the HOPS codebase. In this paper, we present the requirements, specifications, and design of HOPS 4.0 and the current state of the refactoring, and we discuss future work.

Ionospheric total electron content anomaly possibly associated with the April 4, 2010 Mw7.2 Baja California earthquake

• New decomposition and nonlinear fitting method to extract TEC disturbances. • TEC increasing near epicenter on March 25, 2010, 10 days before Mw7.2 Baja California earthquake. • Both data and model show the uniqueness of the TEC enhancement on March 25. Identifying ionospheric disturbances potentially related to an earthquake is a challenging work. Based on the ionospheric total electron content (TEC) data from the madrigal database at the Haystack Observatory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a new decomposition and nonlinear fitting method has been developed and applied in this work to extract the TEC disturbances that are potentially related to the Mw7.2 Baja California earthquake occurred on April 4, 2010. By analyzing the TEC data for a long period of time (72 days) before and after the earthquake, we found that a unique TEC enhancement occurred in the region around the epicenter on March 25. No other significant ionospheric TEC anomalies were identified in the 72-day period around the earthquake, except some TEC disturbances that appeared to be related to the geomagnetic activity between April 1 and 6, 2010. We further analyzed the TEC data from other magnetically quiet days, and no TEC anomaly like that occurred on March 25 was detected. The TEC data calculated from a first principles model SD-WACCM-X were also analyzed using the same method as that for the observational data. No TEC anomaly was found on March 25 from the model outputs either. Thus the source of the TEC anomaly on March 25 is unlikely from the lower atmosphere waves. In this study, we show the occurrence of TEC anomaly on March 25, 10 days before the Mw7.2 Baja California earthquake and this TEC anomaly may not be explained by lower atmosphere or geomagnetic activity forcing.

The characteristics of terdiurnal tides in the ionosphere

Studying the characteristics of terdiurnal tides in the ionosphere provides an important pathway to understand the dynamic coupling between the low atmosphere and the ionosphere. Based on the TEC data from the Madrigal database at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory, a decomposition and nonlinear fitting method is used to derive ionospheric terdiurnal tides. Statistical analysis is then carried out to study the variability of ionospheric terdiurnal tides. Both the absolute and relative amplitudes of terdiurnal tides are large near the equator and in the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) region. The relative amplitude of terdiurnal tides in the Northern Hemisphere is larger than that in the Southern Hemisphere at low latitude, exhibiting hemispheric asymmetry. The amplitudes of terdiurnal tides at magnetic middle latitudes (∼35 °N MLat) at the east hemisphere (142 °E), west hemisphere (90 °W) and zero degree longitude sites all have annual, semiannual and 4-month cycles. Furthermore, our analysis shows that there are longitudinal variations of terdiurnal tides and these variations appear to be dependent on solar activity. Terdiurnal tides show two peaks near the equinoxes, one in March and April, and the other between October and November. The terdiurnal tides with characteristics of large amplitudes in the equator and EIA regions, and their correlation with the diurnal and semidiurnal components suggest that terdiurnal tides and their intra-annual variations are likely related to the nonlinear interaction between diurnal and semidiurnal tides, which also show strong intra-annual variations.

A case study of the large-scale traveling ionospheric disturbances in the eastern Asian sector during the 2015 St. Patrick's Day geomagnetic storm

Abstract. This study presents a comprehensive observation of the large-scale traveling ionospheric disturbances (LSTIDs) in the eastern Asian sector during the 2015 St. Patrick's Day (17 March 2015) geomagnetic storm. For the first time, three dense networks of GPS receivers in China and Japan are combined together to obtain the two-dimensional (2-D) vertical total electron content (VTEC) perturbation maps in a wider longitudinal range than previous studies in this region. Results show that an LSTID spanning at least 60∘ in longitude (80–140∘ E) occurs as a result of possible atmospheric gravity waves (AGWs) propagating from high to lower latitudes at around 09:40–11:40 UT (universal time), and the crest of this LSTID shows a tendency of dissipation starting from the eastern side. The manifestation of the 2-D VTEC perturbation maps is in good agreement with the recordings from two high-frequency Doppler sounders and the iso-frequency lines from eight ionosondes. Then, the propagation parameters of the LSTIDs are estimated by applying least-square fitting methods to the distinct structures in the 2-D VTEC perturbation plots. In general, the propagation parameters are observably longitudinally dependent. For example, the propagation direction is almost due southward between 105 and 115∘ E, while it is slightly southwest and southeast in the western and eastern sides of this region. This feature is probably related to the regional geomagnetic declination. The mean values of the period, trough velocity (Vt), crest velocity (Vc), and wavelength of the LSTIDs in the studied longitudinal bands are 74.8±1.4 min, 578±16 m s−1, 617±23 m s−1, and 2691±80 km, respectively. Finally, using the VTEC map data from the Madrigal database of the MIT Haystack Observatory, the characteristics of the ionospheric disturbances over the European sector (30–70∘ N, 10–20∘ E) are also studied. The results are very different from those in the eastern Asian sector in parameters like the occurrence time, oscillation period, and propagation velocities.

Demonstrating the Principles of Aperture Synthesis with Table- Top Laboratory Exercises

Many undergraduate radio astronomy courses are unable to give a detailed treatment of aperture synthesis due to time constraints and limited math backgrounds of students. We have taken a laboratory-based approach to teaching radio interferometry using a set of college-level, table-top exercises. These are performed with the Very Small Radio Telescope (VSRT), an interferometer developed at the Haystack Observatory using satellite TV electronics as detectors and compact fluorescent light bulbs as microwave signal sources. The hands-on experience provided by the VSRT in these labs allows students to gain a conceptual understanding of radio interferometry and aperture synthesis without the rigorous mathematical background traditionally required. The data are quickly and easily processed using a user-friendly data analysis Java package, VSRTI_Plotter.jar. This software can also be used in the absence of the equipment as an interactive computer activity to demonstrate an interferometer’s responses to assorted surface brightness distributions. The students also gain some familiarity with Fourier transforms and an appreciation for the Fourier relations in interferometry using another Java package, the Tool for Interactive Fourier Transforms (TIFT). We have successfully used these tools in multiple offerings of our radio astronomy course at Union College

Short Baseline Observations at Geodetic Observatory Wettzell

The Geodetic Observatory Wettzell (GOW), jointly operated by the Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy (BKG), Germany and the Technical University of Munich, Germany is equipped with three radio telescopes for Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI). Correlation capability is primarily designed for relative positioning of the three Wettzell radio telescopes i.e., to derive the local ties between the three telescopes from VLBI raw data in addition to the conventional terrestrial surveys. A computing cluster forming the GO Wettzell Local Correlator (GOWL) was installed in 2017 as well as the Distributed FX (DiFX) software correlation package and the Haystack Observatory Postprocessing System (HOPS) for fringe fitting and postprocessing of the output. Data pre-processing includes ambiguity resolution (if necessary) as well as the generation of the geodetic database and NGS card files with υ Solve. The final analysis is either carried out with local processing software (LEVIKA short baseline analysis) or with the Vienna VLBI and Satellite (VieVS) software. We will present an overview of the scheduling, correlation and analysis capabilities at GOW and results obtained so. The dataset includes auxiliary files (schedule and log files) which contain information about the participating antenna, observed sources, clock offset between formatter and GPS time, cable delay, meteorological parameters (temperature, barometric pressure, and relative humidity) and ASCII files created after fringe fitting and final analysis. The published dataset can be used by the researchers and scientists to further explore short baseline interferometry.

Radio Stars: From kHz to THz

Advances in technology and instrumentation have now opened up virtually the entire radio spectrum to the study of stars. An international workshop, “Radio Stars: From kHz to THz”, was held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory on 2017 November 1–3 to discuss the progress in solar and stellar astrophysics enabled by radio wavelength observations. Topics covered included the Sun as a radio star; radio emission from hot and cool stars (from the pre- to post-main-sequence); ultracool dwarfs; stellar activity; stellar winds and mass loss; planetary nebulae; cataclysmic variables; classical novae; and the role of radio stars in understanding the Milky Way. This article summarizes meeting highlights along with some contextual background information.

Fringe fitting and group delay determination for geodetic VLBI observations of DOR tones

Extracting the group and phase delays of interferometric observations produced in the Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) measurement concept requires a special fringe fitting and delay search algorithm for the recorded bandwidth. While fringe fitting is in use routinely for several megahertz wide channels in geodetic and astrometric VLBI with quasar observations, fringe fitting for artificial tones of very small bandwidth of artificial signals for Differential One-way Ranging (DOR) requires a different way of handling. In a project called Observing the Chang’E-3 Lander with VLBI (OCEL), the DOR tones emitted by the Chang’E-3 lander were observed in a standard geodetic VLBI mode with 8 or 4 MHz wide channels to maintain compatibility with the corresponding quasar observations. For these observations, we modified the existing fringe fitting program of the Haystack Observatory Processing Software (HOPS), fourfit, to properly handle narrow band DOR tones. The main motivations are that through this modification, the data of quasars and artificial radio sources can be processed in the existing geodetic analysis pipeline, and that the algorithm can be used for similar projects as well. In this paper, we describe the algorithm and show that the new algorithm produces much more reliable group delay results than using the standard fourfit algorithm. This is done by a simulation test and in particular by processing of real observations. It is shown that in many cases, systematic deviations of several nanoseconds, which are seen with the standard fourfit algorithm, can be avoided. The ultimate benefit of the new procedure is demonstrated by reducing the errors in delay triangle closures by at least a factor of 3, which, in the OCEL case, is from ∼300 to ∼100 ps.

Validation of Ionospheric Specifications During Geomagnetic Storms: TEC and foF2 During the 2013 March Storm Event

AbstractTo address challenges of assessing space weather modeling capabilities, the Community Coordinated Modeling Center is leading a newly established International Forum for Space Weather Modeling Capabilities Assessment. This paper presents preliminary results of validation of modeled foF2 (F2 layer critical frequency) and TEC (total electron content) during the first selected 2013 March storm event (17 March 2013). In this study, we used eight ionospheric models ranging from empirical to physics‐based, coupled ionosphere‐thermosphere and data assimilation models. The quantities we considered are TEC and foF2 changes and percentage changes compared to quiet time background, and the maximum and minimum percentage changes. In addition, we considered normalized percentage changes of TEC. We compared the modeled quantities with ground‐based observations of vertical Global Navigation Satellite System TEC (provided by Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory) and foF2 data (provided by Global Ionospheric Radio Observatory) at the 12 locations selected in middle latitudes of the American and European‐African longitude sectors. To quantitatively evaluate the models' performance, we calculated skill scores including correlation coefficient, root‐mean square error (RMSE), ratio of the modeled to observed maximum percentage changes (yield), and timing error. Our study indicates that average RMSEs of foF2 range from about 1 MHz to 1.5 MHz. The average RMSEs of TEC are between ~5 and ~10 TECU (1 TEC Unit = 1016 el/m2). dfoF2[%] RMSEs are between 15% and 25%, which is smaller than RMSE of dTEC[%] ranging from 30% to 60%. The performance of the models varies with the location and metrics considered.

Demonstration of a Broadband Very Long Baseline Interferometer System: A New Instrument for High‐Precision Space Geodesy

AbstractA prototype broadband geodetic very long baseline interferometry system has been implemented, and measurements of the baseline length over approximately two years, between December 2014 and January 2017, have been made in the process of exercising the system, developing operational procedures, and assessing geodetic precision for the new broadband observing concept. In addition to developing a broadband signal chain and installing the instrumentation on both a new 12‐m antenna at the Goddard Geophysical and Astrophysical Observatory and the 18‐m Westford antenna at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory, it was necessary to develop new correlation and analysis procedures to process the four‐band, dual‐linear‐polarization data. A geodetic analysis of the data from 19 sessions that were observed during this period yielded a weighted root‐mean‐square deviation of the baseline length residuals about the weighted mean of 1.6 mm. These results validate several of the expectations set forth for the vision of the next‐generation geodetic very long baseline interferometry system.

Science, Society, and Software Engineering

column Share on Science, Society, and Software Engineering: Part 3 -- The Catch Author: Robert Schaefer MIT Haystack Observatory MIT Haystack ObservatoryView Profile Authors Info & Claims ACM SIGSOFT Software Engineering NotesVolume 42Issue 1March 2017 pp 4–6https://doi.org/10.1145/3041765.3041770Published:22 March 2017Publication History 0citation95DownloadsMetricsTotal Citations0Total Downloads95Last 12 Months1Last 6 weeks0 Get Citation AlertsNew Citation Alert added!This alert has been successfully added and will be sent to:You will be notified whenever a record that you have chosen has been cited.To manage your alert preferences, click on the button below.Manage my AlertsNew Citation Alert!Please log in to your account Save to BinderSave to BinderCreate a New BinderNameCancelCreateExport CitationPublisher SiteGet Access

Ionospheric plasma disturbances generated by naturally occurring large-scale anomalous heat sources

We report the findings from our investigation on the possibility of large-scale anomalous thermal gradients to generate acoustic-gravity waves (AGWs) and traveling ionospheric disturbances (TIDs). In particular, here we consider the case of summer 2006 North American heat wave event as a concrete example of such large-scale natural thermal gradients. This special scenario of AGW/TID generation was formulated based on the results of our experiments at the Arecibo Observatory in July 2006, followed by a systematic monitoring/surveillance of total electron content (TEC) fluctuations over North America in 2005–2007 using the MIT Haystack Observatory's Madrigal database. The data from our Arecibo experiments indicate a continual occurrence of intense AGW/TID over the Caribbean on 21–24 July 2006, and the Madrigal TEC data analysis shows that the overall level of TID activity over North America had increased by ∼0.2 TECU during the summer 2006 heat wave event. Our proposed scenario is in agreement with these empirical observations, and is generally consistent with a number of past ionospheric HF heating experiments related to AGW/TID generation.

Seasonal and Local Solar Time Variation of the Meridional Wind at 95 km from Observations of the 11.072-GHz Ozone Line and the 557.7-nm Oxygen Line

AbstractGround-based spectrometers have been deployed to measure the concentration, velocity, and temperature of ozone in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT), using low-cost satellite television electronics to observe the 11.072-GHz line of ozone. The ozone line was observed at an altitude near 95 km at 38°N, 71°W using three spectrometers located at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Haystack Observatory (Westford, Massachusetts), Chelmsford High School (Chelmsford, Massachusetts), and Union College (Schenectady, New York), each pointed south at 8° elevation. Observations from 2009 through 2014 were used to derive the nightly averaged seasonal variation of the 95-km altitude meridional wind velocity, as well as the seasonally averaged variation of the meridional wind with local solar time. The results indicate a seasonal trend in which the winds at 95 km are directed southward at about 10 m s−1 in the summer of the Northern Hemisphere and northward at about 10 m s−1 in the winter. Nighttime data from −5 to +5 local solar time show a gradual transition of the meridional wind velocity from about −20 to 20 m s−1. These variations correlate well with nighttime wind measurements using 557.7-nm optical airglow observations from the Millstone Hill high-resolution Fábry–Perot interferometer (FPI) in Westford.

Statistical framework for estimating GNSS bias

Abstract. We present a statistical framework for estimating global navigation satellite system (GNSS) non-ionospheric differential time delay bias. The biases are estimated by examining differences of measured line-integrated electron densities (total electron content: TEC) that are scaled to equivalent vertical integrated densities. The spatiotemporal variability, instrumentation-dependent errors, and errors due to inaccurate ionospheric altitude profile assumptions are modeled as structure functions. These structure functions determine how the TEC differences are weighted in the linear least-squares minimization procedure, which is used to produce the bias estimates. A method for automatic detection and removal of outlier measurements that do not fit into a model of receiver bias is also described. The same statistical framework can be used for a single receiver station, but it also scales to a large global network of receivers. In addition to the Global Positioning System (GPS), the method is also applicable to other dual-frequency GNSS systems, such as GLONASS (Globalnaya Navigazionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema). The use of the framework is demonstrated in practice through several examples. A specific implementation of the methods presented here is used to compute GPS receiver biases for measurements in the MIT Haystack Madrigal distributed database system. Results of the new algorithm are compared with the current MIT Haystack Observatory MAPGPS (MIT Automated Processing of GPS) bias determination algorithm. The new method is found to produce estimates of receiver bias that have reduced day-to-day variability and more consistent coincident vertical TEC values.

EOF analysis and modeling of GPS TEC climatology over North America

AbstractAn empirical ionospheric model of the total electron content (TEC) over North America (20°–60°N, 40°–140°W) is constructed using the GPS TEC data collected by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Haystack Observatory during the years 2001–2012. This model is based on an analysis of quiet time monthly averages using the empirical orthogonal function (EOF) decomposition technique, allowing for separation of spatial and temporal variations. The importance of different types of spatial‐temporal variations to the overall TEC variability can be well represented by the characteristics of EOF basis functions and associated principal components coefficients, with various modes. The mode one EOF decomposition constitutes 97.5% of the total variance and therefore represents the essential feature of North America spatial and diurnal variation of the TEC. The mode two EOF, as reported in an earlier study, reveals a large and significant symmetric longitudinal variation of the ionosphere, organized with respect to magnetic declination. The mode three EOF decomposition shows midlatitude latitudinal structure that varies with season in a manner very similar to the so‐called winter anomaly. Because of the quick convergence of EOF decomposition modes, the first four EOF modes are utilized for constructing a TEC empirical model. For each of the EOF modes, the temporal variations are expressed analytically in terms of local time, season, and solar activity, and the spatial variations by cubic‐spline functions. An analysis of accuracy and quality indicates that this regional empirical TEC model can reflect the majority of the quiet time monthly means, and represent characteristic temporal‐spatial variations in the North America.

Ionospheric response to CIR‐induced recurrent geomagnetic activity during the declining phase of solar cycle 23

AbstractThis paper presents an epoch analysis of global ionosphere responses to recurrent geomagnetic activity during 79 corotating interaction region (CIR) events from 2004 to 2009. The data used were GPS total electron content (TEC) data from the Madrigal Database at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory and the electron density (Ne) data obtained from CHAllenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP) observations. The results show that global ionosphere responses to CIR events have some common features. In high and middle latitudes, the total electron content (TEC) showed a significant positive response (increased electron densities) in the first epoch day. A negative TEC response occurred at high latitudes of the American sector following the positive response. The CHAMP Ne showed a daytime positive response in all latitudes and a nighttime negative response in the subauroral region. These negative TEC and Ne responses were found to be related to thermospheric composition (O/N2) changes during the storms. At all latitudes, the maximum of the TEC positive effect always occurred at 2–6 h after the CIR starting during local daytime and 10–18 h later for the CIR onset during local nighttime. Case studies indicate that the TEC and Ne positive response had a strong dependence on the southward component (Bz) of the interplanetary magnetic field and solar wind speed. This suggests that penetration electric fields that were associated with changes in solar winds might play a significant role in the positive ionospheric response to storms. During the recovery time of the CIR‐produced geomagnetic activity, the TEC positive disturbance at low latitudes sometimes could last for 2–4 days, whereas at middle to high latitudes the disturbance lasted only for 1 day in most cases. A comparison of the ionospheric responses between the American, European and Asian sectors shows that the ionosphere response in the North American sector was stronger than that in the other two regions. The response of foF2 to the CIR events in middle to high latitudes showed a negative response for 2–3 days after the first epoch day. This is different from the response of TEC, which was mostly positive during the same period of time.

Polyphase‐coded incoherent scatter measurements at Millstone Hill

We report first results of polyphase‐coded incoherent scatter measurements at Millstone Hill. To our knowledge, these are the first incoherent scatter measurements with polyphase alternating codes of Markkanen et al. (2008) and optimal quadriphase sequences of Damtie et al. (2008). The results demonstrate that an arbitrary waveform generator recently installed at the Millstone Hill incoherent scatter radar, part of the National Science Foundation Geospace Facility operated by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory, is capable of reproducing the polyphase waveforms with an accuracy sufficient for incoherent scatter measurements. Polyphase codes will allow incoherent scatter radar experiments to be better optimized, because they provide a larger variety of code and code cycle lengths than the traditional binary codes.

Radio Stars and Their Lives in the Galaxy

ABSTRACTThis article summarizes the 3-day international workshop Radio Stars and Their Lives in the Galaxy, held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Haystack Observatory on 2012 October 3–5. The workshop was organized to provide a forum for the presentation and discussion of advances in stellar and solar astrophysics recently (or soon to be) enabled by the latest generation of state-of-the-art observational facilities operating from meter to submillimeter wavelengths. The meeting brought together both observers and theorists to discuss how radio wavelength observations are providing new and unique insights into the workings of stars and their role in the Galactic ecosystem. Topics covered included radio emission from hot and cool stars (from the pre- to post-main-sequence), the Sun as a radio star, circumstellar chemistry, planetary nebulae, white dwarf binaries and novae, supernova progenitors, and radio stars as probes of the Galaxy.