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Seit August 2004 wird am geophysikalischen Observatorium Collm (51.3° N, 13° E) ein SKiYMET Meteor-Radar betrieben. Dieses liefert seitdem kontinuierliche Temperaturwerte und Windmessungen. Die Grundlage des Messverfahrens stellt ein stetiger Fluss von Meteoren dar, die in einer Höhe von 75-105 km verglühen. Aus den mit dem Radar bestimmten Positionen der Meteore können Temperaturen in der Mesopausenregion abgeschätzt werden. Für die Darstellung des Jahresganges wurden Tagesmittelwerte genutzt. Dabei tritt im Sommer ein Temperaturminimum mit ca. 170 K auf. Im Winter ist die Situation durch Temperaturen von 205 K und starker planetarer Wellenaktivität gekennzeichnet. Desweiteren konnte eine Klimatologie für die ganz-, halbtägigen und 8-stündigen Gezeiten erstellt werden. / Since August 2004 a SKiYMET meteor-Radar is operated at the geophysical Observatory Collm, Germany (51.3° N, 13° E). The radar provides a continuous time series of temperature and wind measurements. The bases for this method is a steady flux of meteors entering the earth’s atmosphere. In an altitude between 75-105 km they form a cylindrical plasma trail, which reflects radar signals. Hence the system can determine the positions of the meteors, which are used to estimate mesopause region temperatures. For the diagram of the seasonal change we used daily mean temperatures. The summer shows a temperature minimum with 170 K. During the Winter we observed temperatures about 205 K and a stronger planetary wave activity. Another part was the generation of a climatology for the diurnal, semidiurnal und terdiurnal tide.

In meteor-burst communications systems, the channel is bursty with a continuously fluctuating signal-to-noise ratio. Adaptive data rate systems attempt to use the channel more optimally by varying the bit rate. Current adaptive rate systems use a method of closed-loop decision-feedback to control the transmitted data rate. It is proposed that an open-loop adaptive data rate system without a decision feedback path may be possible using implicit channel information carried in the first few milliseconds of the link establishment probe signal. The system would have primary application in low-cost half-duplex telemetry systems. It is shown that the key elements in such a system would be channel predictors. The development of these predictors is the focus of this research. Two novel methods of predicting channel parameters are developed. The first utilises early fast Doppler information that precedes many long duration, large signal-to-noise-ratio overdense trails. The presence of early fast Doppler at the trail commencement is used as a toggle to operate at a higher data rate. Factors influencing the use of early fast Doppler for this purpose are also presented. The second method uses artificial neural networks. Data measured during trail formation is processed and presented to the neural networks for prediction of trail parameters. Several successful neural networks are presented which predict trail type, underdense or overdense, and peak trail amplitude from the first 50ms of the trail's lifetime. This method allows better estimation of the developing trail. This fact can be used to implement a multi-rate open-loop adaptive data rate system. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1994.

Meteore, die in die Atmosphäre eindringen, bilden bei hohen Oberflächentemperaturen, die durch Kollisionen mit der umgebenden Luft hervorgerufen werden, einen mehrere Kilometer langen Plasmaschweif aus. An diesem Schweif werden ausgesandte Radarwellen reflektiert und zurückgestreut. Dies führt zu einem charakteristischen Schwingungsverhalten, auch Fresnel Zonen genannt, am Empfänger. Die Überlagerung dieser Wellen ist verantwortlich für die typische Signalform eines Meteors, mit dem abrupten Anstieg und dem exponentiellen Abfall für \'underdense\' Meteore. Mit Hilfe einer Simulation wird der theoretische Zusammenhang zwischen Geschwindigkeit und Signalverlauf demonstriert. Des weiteren wird gezeigt, das die Methode von Baggaley et al. [1997] zur Bestimmung von Meteoreintrittsgeschwindigkeiten auch auf ein Radarinterferometer (SKiYMET) anwendbar ist. Abschliessend werden die gewonnen Ergebnisse mit einem anderen Verfahren sowie der Literatur verglichen. / Meteors, penetrating the earths atmosphere, creating at high surface temperatures, which are caused by collisions with the surrounding air molecules, a several kilometer long plasma trail. The ionized plasma backscatters transmitted radar waves. This leads to characteristic oscillations, called Fresnel zones, at the receiver. The interference of these waves entails the typical signal shape of a underdense meteor with the sudden rise of the signal and the exponential decay. By means of a simulation the theoretical connection between velocity and signal shape is demonstrated. Furthermore it is presented, that the method from Baggaley et al. [1997] for determination of meteor entry velocities is applicable for a radar interferometer (SKiYMET). Finally the results are compared to other radar methods on similar equipment and to other experiments.

The quasi two-day wave (QTDW) at 82–97km altitude over Collm (51° N, 13° E) has been observed using a VHF meteor radar. The long-term mean amplitudes calculated using data between September 2004 and August 2014 show a strong summer maximum 5 and a much weaker winter maximum. In summer, the meridional amplitude is slightly larger than the zonal one with about 15ms°1 at 91 km height. Phase differences are slightly greater than 90° on an average. The periods of the summer QTDW vary between 43 and 52H during strong bursts, while in winter the periods tend to be more diffuse. On an average, the summer QTDW is amplified after a maximum of 10 zonal wind shear which is connected with the summer mesospheric jet and there is a possible correlation of the summer mean amplitudes with the backgound wind shear. QTDW amplitudes exhibit considerable inter-annual variability, however, a clear relation between the 11 year solar cycle and the QTDW is not found.

Meteor radar observations of mesosphere/lower thermosphere (MLT) daily temperatures have been performed at Collm, Germany since August 2004. The data have been analyzed with respect to long-period oscillations at time scales of 2–30 days. The results reveal that oscillations with periods of up to 6 days are more frequently observed during summer, while those with longer periods have larger amplitudes during winter. The oscillations may be considered as the signature of planetary waves. The results are compared with analyses from radar wind measurements. Moreover, the temperature oscillations show considerable year-to-year variability. In particular, amplitudes of the quasi 5-day oscillation have increased during the last decade, and the quasi 10-day oscillations are larger if the equatorial stratospheric winds are eastward.

Investigations into currently accepted methods of modelling variations in the arrival rate of meteors over forward-scatter meteor links have revealed some shortcomings. In these investigations, particular emphasis is placed on the work of Rudie due to its current acceptance in the literature. The non-uniform radiant distribution of meteors measured by Davies and modelled by Rudie, is critically examined and predictions using these models are compared with measured results taken over two forward-scatter links in the Southern Hemisphere. A new, alternative method of including the effect of non-uniform radiant distributions on the predicted arrival rate of meteors is given. The method used by Rudie to model Davies' measured radiant distribution is shown to be unnecessarily complicated and a simpler alternative is given. Furthermore, Rudie's distribution is shown not to be derived from a particular set of Davies' results as implied by Rudie. Other non-uniform distributions of meteors are also investigated. Comparisons between monthly-averaged daily cycles of measured and predicted arrival rates of meteors for a midpath and an endpath meteor link are used to reveal the validity and limitations of the published distributions. A new graphical method is used to aid in determining the validity and limitations of the non-uniform distributions. Discrepancies in the published predicted and measured annual variations in the arrival rate of meteors are investigated. Contrary to recently published information, predicted annual variations in the arrival rate of meteors for meteor radiants close to the ecliptic are shown to be comparable to measured results. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1991.

The purpose of this study is to develop an understanding of the observability of small-scale dynamical Solar System features in meteor orbit radar data, particularly with reference to mean motion resonance effects. Particular focus is placed on the presence of `resonant swarms' in meteoroid streams: the resonant swarm at the 7:2 Jovian mean-motion resonance is used as an example, as it best satisfies radar observability criterion. Furthermore, evidence for this structure exists in visual meteor data. The radar dataset used for this study is that of the Canadian Meteor Orbit Radar (CMOR) as this dataset contains the largest number of meteoroid stream particles. The aim here is to determine whether the Taurid resonant swarm is observable in datasets produced by radars such as CMOR, or what improvements in individual orbital uncertainties are necessary for positive detection to be possible. The observability of the Taurid swarm in radar data depends on the limitations of the radar data (in terms of the individual measurement uncertainties); and on the properties of the resonance itself. Both aspects are investigated in this thesis. A statistical study is first conducted to assess whether evidence for the swarm exists in a dataset containing CMOR Northern and Southern Taurids from the years 2002 to 2007. It is found that the level of variations present is consistent with that expected due to random fluctuations: there is no evidence for a statistically significant resonant feature at the location of the 7:2 Jovian resonance. Additionally, the observability of various sizes of resonant peak for different sizes of dataset and for different levels of measurement uncertainties is investigated by addition of a modelled resonant feature to the data, followed by replacement of individual meteors by Gaussian profiles to simulate the effect of orbital uncertainties. It is clear that the level of broadening resulting from the uncertainties of the CMOR data used will not allow the observation of a resonant peak of the expected size. Detection is expected to be more likely in a `swarm encounter year' (a year in which the geometry between the resonant swarm and Earth is favourable to detection). The velocity uncertainties of a meteor orbit radar (similar to CMOR) need to be improved by a factor of 5 to 10 (relative to the CMOR uncertainties) in order to detect a resonant swarm that is composed of ~30% to ~5% (respectively) of the total number of observed Taurids in a swarm encounter year. An improvement significantly greater than a factor of ~10 is unlikely to result in a significant improvement in the ability to detect the resonant swarm. It is expected that a factor of 10 improvement in radar measurement uncertainties is achievable with the current techniques of radar systems and signal processing. These statistical tests require knowledge of the resonant width of the 7:2 Jovian resonance in semi-major axis, as this provides the size of the resonant feature of interest. Such resonant or libration widths can be determined analytically for orbits with low eccentricities. As Taurid orbits have high eccentricities (e~0.83), a hierarchical N-body integrator is used to examine the dynamics in the region of the 7:2 resonance, and determine a resonant width of (0.047±0.005) AU. To verify this method the standard analytic equations and a semi-analytic method are compared (at low eccentricities) with the numerical resonant width values: the agreement is within 10% for eccentricities below 0.4. It is important to know what proportion of radar Taurids are expected to be resonant in a swarm year in order to evaluate the observability of the swarm in radar data. One important factor that may affect this is the mass distribution of particles in the swarm. This is investigated by ejecting particles in multiple directions from three model comets: the first with a mass and orbit in agreement with those of the current 2P/Encke; the second with 2P/Encke mass and an orbit matching that of the proposed proto-Encke object; and a third with the mass and orbit of proto-Encke. The resulting orbits are examined to determine what proportion will land within the 7:2 resonance, for a range of particle masses and densities. The instantaneous effect of radiation pressure on the orbits of ejected particles is also considered. However, it is difficult to determine accurate capture percentage values due to the uncertainty surrounding cometary ejection mechanisms. Nevertheless, it is found that capture of Taurids into the 7:2 resonance by all comets is possible. Using comparisons between the percentages of visual-sized and radar-sized particles captured, it is determined that in weak swarm years (in which only 20% of visual meteoroids detected are resonant) only 4% to 5% of observed visual Taurids are expected to be resonant. Such a swarm would be on the edge of observability. However, in stronger swarm years (such as 2005), the resonant proportion will exceed that required for detection with a reduction in CMOR measurement uncertainties of a factor of ten.

Meteors are light events appearing in the sky, looking like strips of light. A meteor occurs when a space object, a meteoroid, enters the earth’s atmosphere at high velocity and starts to glow. Meteor triangulation is an important part in astronomical research, by mapping streams of material in our solar system the knowledge about the solar system is extended. By making measurements with meteor cameras and calculate the meteors trajectories with triangulation methods, the meteors origin in space can be derived. Previous research has shown that by including time measurements, and not only use triangulation techniques with spatial measurements, the trajectory for a meteor can be calculated more accurately. This project seeks to explore if including the time information from the Swedish meteor data would create more precise solutions for the meteor’s paths through the atmosphere. This was done by investigating how the time variable can be implemented and running the Swedish 2020 Perseid data through the algorithm that implements the time variable. The accuracy of the methods is determined by how exact the Perseids radiant position is calculated and also by looking at the computed velocities for the meteor events. The results from this project show that the time variable should be considered in the Swedish meteor triangulation algorithm. With inclusion of the time variable, the radiant position of the Perseids can be more closely determined and the velocities for the meteors are in the expected range for Perseid meteors. But it turns out that the timestamps between the meteor cameras are not synchronized, which means that time offsets between the stations are required. / Meteorer är ljusfenomen som kan ses på natthimlen, de ser ut som ljusstreck och kallas även stjärnfall. En meteor inträffar när ett objekt från rymden, en meteoroid, kommer in i jordatmosfären med hög hastighet och börjar glöda. Meteortriangulering är en viktig del i astronomisk forskning, genom att kartlägga strömmar av material i solsystemet kan kunskapen om vårt solsystem breddas. Meteorers ursprung kan beräknas genom att göra mätningar med meteorkameror, för att sedan med trianguleringsmetoder beräkna dess banor genom atmosfären.  Tidigare forskning har visat att man kan få mer noggranna bestämningar för meteorspår genom att inkludera tidmätningar i beräkningarna, i Sverige används just nu endast trianguleringsmetoder som bygger på spatiella mätningar. Målet med det här projektet är att undersöka om inkludering av tidmätningar från den svenska meteordatan kan ge mer exakta lösningar för meteorspår. Detta undersöktes genom att kolla på hur tidsvariabeln kan integreras i den svenska trianguleringsalgoritmen och sedan testköra svensk perseiddata från år 2020. Precisionen i metoderna avgörs genom att kolla på hur exakt perseidernas radiantposition kan bestämmas och genom att kolla på meteorernas beräknade hastigheter i atmosfären. Resultaten från det här projektet visar att tidsvariabeln borde tas i beaktning i den svenska trianguleringsalgoritmen. Genom att inkludera tidsvariabeln kan radiantpositionerna bestämmas mer exakt och hastigheterna är inom det förväntade spannet för perseidmeteorer. Men det visade sig att tidmätningarna mellan de olika kamerorna är osynkroniserade, så tidsoffsets måste inkluderas i algoritmen.