Satellite-Based Monitoring System for Ionospheric Disturbances

The University of New Mexico (UNM) has started the development of a new, low-cost means of characterizing Total Electron Content in the Ionosphere using a CubeSat System. Developed by a team predominantly composed of undergraduate students funded through the National Science Foundation (NSF) REU program. Congurable Space Microsystems Innovations & Applications Center (COSMIAC) at the UNM is developing a Lightning Spectrometer that will be comprised of spaceborne sensors as well as ground-based detectors. The system works by measuring distortion of lightning impulses as they are bent by Ionospheric diraction. Students have become familiar with lightning propagation and ionospheric occurrences through analysis and research which revealed that lightning acts as an electric dipole antenna emitting radio wave propagation that aects the ionosphere. Understanding the relevant physics is key to measuring dispersion and Total Electron Content. Using Uman’s Model as a basis of gauging lightning, we can calculate the electric potential emitted by each signal. Radio wave propagation modeling and Chapman’s functions help represent how the ionosphere reacts to natural occurrences. We detect the lightning intensity using the dipole antenna that transmits these signals to an Analog-to-Digital Converter wherein the information is captured and transformed into Fourier space. The signal path is determined by locating the lightning using time of ight to both the spacecraft and