The determination of ionospheric electron content by observation of Faraday fading

Abstract

From a study of the Faraday fading of signals transmitted from a satellite on 20 or 40 Mc/s the total electron content between satellite and observer can be determined. In special cases a simple interpretation of the records is possible. This method can be applied to the study of the ionosphere above the F2 maximum. The results of preliminary experiments are presented. A form of satellite transmission is described which would be particularly suitable for such studies.