Copies of author's previously published articles are inserted between p. 272-283 and are not numbered as part of main text. / Bibliography: p. 283-293. / xxii, 293 p. : ill. ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This thesis is concerned with the observations of meteors with a narrow beam, high gain, VHF radar system, operating at a frequency of 54.1 MHz. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Physics and Mathematical Physics, 1996