The two major types of phenomena associated with solar flares are the immediate effects and the

delayed effects. The immediate effects

occur simultaneously with the visible flare and consist of phenomena known as solar radio bursts and sudden ionospheric disturbances.
The delayed effects occur 15 minutes to 72 hours after the flare and consist of ground-level events, polar cap absorption, geomagnetic
disturbances, and aurora. Immediate effects are most pronounced with large flares, but important effects may also occur with subflares.
Solar radio bursts. Solar radio emission originates as background radiation and as enhancements from bright regions and transient
disturbances such as flares. Many flares are accompanied by increased emissions at the radio frequencies. The cause of this increased
emission is believed to be the passage of particle streams through the earths atmosphere.
Sudden ionospheric disturbances. The high degree of radiation from solar flares produces abnormally high ionization in all layers of the
ionosphere. This increase in ionization occurs very suddenly throughout the daylight area of the earth and is called a sudden ionospheric
disturbance (SID). SIDs occur almost simultaneously with a flare and may last from minutes to several hours. Normally, frequencies from
about 1 or 2MHz to about 20MHz are made useless because of high absorption in the D layer. During a SID, higher frequencies (above
20MHz) may be used for long-distance communications. These frequencies refract off the increasingly denser F layers instead of passing
through the ionosphere as they normally would. Lower frequencies, however, are will be absorbed so much by the denser ionosphere that
they are will only be useful for short-distance ground-wave communications. SIDs only occur during daylight and are the most unusual of
all atmospheric disturbances.TEST
Ionospheric storms. Ionospheric storms are actually strong magnetic disturbances in the upper atmosphere from 18 to 72 hours after
SIDs. The occurrence of SIDs doesnt mean that ionospheric storms will follow. Unlike SIDs, ionospheric storms can be present during
the day or night. Critical frequencies will drop below normal, which limits use of higher frequencies. The worst effects occur in the
auroral zones near the north and south poles, decreasing toward the equator. These storms can last from a few minutes to several hours
and all effects will disappear in a few days. During ionospheric storms, communicators should use lower operating frequencies, especially
at the higher latitudes.TEST

SelfTestQuestions
After you complete these questions, you may check your answers at the end of the unit.

Self-Test Questions
After you complete these questions, you may check your answers at the end of the unit.
413. Structure of the atmosphere

1. Name What are the three basic regions of that make up the atmosphere.?
2. How are long-distance, HF communications made possible?
3. What causes the different ionospheric layers?
4. Name the different layers within the ionosphere.
5. Which ionospheric layer is responsible for most ionospheric noise and radio-wave absorption?
6. What is thought to be the cause of sporadic E (Es) layer ionization?
7. Which ionospheric region is the most important factor in HF communications?
8. When does maximum density of the F1 layer occur?
414. Ionospheric variables related to communications
1. What is the length of the sunspot cycle?
2. How many frequencies are required for around-the-clock sky-wave communications?
3. Name the regular variations in the ionosphere.
4. What are sunspots?
5. What is the main cause of most irregular ionospheric disturbances?
6. What frequencies are normally made useless during a sudden ionospheric disturbance?

32. Radio-Wave Propagation

We have learned that radio waves can take several paths from a transmitter to a receiver. Long-distance HF radio transmission uses sky
waves; and short-distance transmission uses ground waves as figure 39 shows. Ground-wave propagation is affected by the earths
electrical characteristics and by the amount of diffraction around the curvature of the earth. These characteristics vary in different

localities, but theyre relatively constant with respect to time and season. Sky-wave propagation is variable, since the constantly changing
state of the ionosphere has a definite effect on the refraction of the waves.

415. Polarization and propagation paths.

Polarization. Radio waves consist of an electric field and a magnetic field. The polarization of an electromagnetic wave is defined as the
plane of vibration of its electric field. For instance, a wave with a vertical electric field is said to be vertically polarized. A wave with a
horizontal electric field is said to be horizontally polarized. The electric lines of force and the corresponding magnetic lines are always at
right angles to each other and to the direction of propagation. A horizontally polarized wave has an electric field parallel to the earths
surface. A vertically polarized wave has an electric field perpendicular to the earths surface. Figure 310 shows horizontally and
vertically polarized waves.
The polarization of the propagated wave is determined initially by the type and arrangement of the transmitting antenna. As a rule, a
vertical conductor radiates a vertically polarized wave. A horizontal conductor radiates a horizontally polarized wave. More complex
forms, such as circular and elliptical polarization, in which the direction of maximum voltage rotates in space at the frequency of
transmission, are also possible. These complex waves are generated by special antennas (e.g., a helix antenna), or may be developed
accidentally when linearly polarized waves pass through nonuniform media such as the ionosphere.
Horizontally polarized waves are weakened more rapidly in traveling over the ground than are vertically polarized waves. At high
frequencies, the polarization of sky waves usually varies, sometimes quite rapidly, and often is elliptical because the wave splits into
several components that follow different paths. Ground waves usually retain the polarization characteristics they had when the wave left
th