Ionospheric heating with oblique waves. Volume 1. Electron density perturbations. Technical report, 13 February 1987-31 August 1988

The transport and chemical equations that described electron density and temperature changes produced by electric fields in the ionosphere are derived and cast into a form suitable for numerical integration. By using those equations in conjunction with previously developed methods for calculating electric fields near caustics, the density and temperature changes produced by an oblique ionospheric high-frequency heater can be computed straightforwardly. The necessary inputs are: (1) heater power, (2) heater radiation pattern, (3) heater frequency, and (4) model ionosphere. Analytical solutions for idealized heater beamshapes indicate that heat conduction and diffusion are also presented.