Using 3D Ray Tracing Technology to Study the Disturbance Effect of Rocket Plume on Ionosphere

Abstract

In this paper, the initial neutral atmospheric parameters, background ionospheric parameters and geomagnetic field parameters of the ionosphere are obtained by NRLMSISE-00 model, IRI-2016 model and IGRF-13 model, respectively. Considering the neutral gas diffusion process, ion chemical reaction and plasma diffusion process, a three-dimensional dynamic model of chemical substances released by rocket plume disturbing the ionosphere is constructed. The influence of the disturbance on the echo path of high frequency radio waves with different incident frequencies is simulated by using three-dimensional digital ray-tracing technology. Using this model, the process of ionospheric disturbance caused by the main chemical substances H2 and H2O in the rocket plume under three different release conditions: fixed-point release at 300 km, vertical path at 250–350 km and parabolic path at 250–350 km, and the influence of the ionospheric cavity on the radio wave propagation of high frequency radio waves at different frequencies are simulated. The main purpose of the article is to focus on the effect of the cavity generated by the rocket exhaust on the propagation of radio waves. It mainly studies the perturbation effect on the ionosphere under different release conditions, considers the neutral gas diffusion process, ion chemical reaction and plasma diffusion process, and establishes the three-dimensional dynamics of the ionospheric electron density and the spatiotemporal distribution of the plume plasma learning model. Finally, the three-dimensional ray-tracing algorithm is used to simulate the propagation path of the radio wave through the disturbance area. We considered three different release conditions, including fixed-point release, vertical path and parabolic path. The ionospheric disturbances produced by these different releases are compared and analyzed, and their effects on the propagation path of radio waves are studied.