@article {255, title = {Citizen radio science: an analysis of Amateur Radio transmissions with e-POP RRI}, journal = {Radio Science}, year = {2018}, abstract = {

We report the results of a radio science experiment involving citizen scientists conducted on 28 June 2015, in which the Radio Receiver Instrument (RRI) on the Enhanced Polar Outflow Probe (e-POP) tuned-in to the 40 and 80 m Ham Radio bands during the 2015 American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Field Day. We have aurally decoded the Morse coded call signs of 14 Hams (amateur operators) from RRI{\textquoteright}s data to help ascertain their locations during the experiment. Through careful analysis of the Hams{\textquoteright} transmissions, and with the aid of ray tracing tools, we have identified two notable magnetoionic effects in the received signals: plasma cutoff and single-mode fading. The signature of the former effect appeared approximately 30 seconds into the experiment, with the sudden cessation of signals received by RRI despite measurements from a network of ground-based receivers showing that the Hams{\textquoteright} transmissions were unabated throughout the experiment. The latter effect, single-mode fading, was detected as a double-peak modulation on the individual {\textquotedblleft}dots{\textquotedblright} and {\textquotedblleft}dashes{\textquotedblright} of one the Ham{\textquoteright}s Morse coded transmissions. We show that the modulation in the Ham{\textquoteright}s signal agrees with expected fading rate for single-mode fading. The results of this experiment demonstrate that Ham Radio transmissions are a valuable tool for studying radio wave propagation and remotely sensing the ionosphere. The analysis and results provide a basis for future collaborations in radio science between traditional researchers in academia and industry, and citizen scientists in which novel and compelling experiments can be performed.

}, keywords = {Citizen Science, ionosphere, Radio Propagation, Radio Science, Satellite}, doi = {10.1029/2017RS006496}, url = {https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2017RS006496}, author = {Perry, G. W. and Frissell, N. A. and Miller, E. S. and Moses, M. and Shovkoplyas, A. and Howarth, A. D. and Yau, A. W.} }