The United States military plans to introduce satellites to understand more how radio transmissions act in the Upper orbit. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has launched Ouija, a new programme that will monitor high-frequency radio signals in the ionosphere using sensors on "low-orbiting satellites.”
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The Ouija programme will concentrate on an ionosphere region ranging in altitude from 125 miles to 185 miles (300-400 kilometres). DARPA intends to contribute to ionospheric research in two areas. First one is to use the Ouija to launch a few small satellites into orbit. DARPA emphasised the use of a high-frequency (HF) mission package with a wide range of frequency and less noise.
“The Ouija program objective is to enhance warfighter capability by developing and validating High Frequency (HF) propagation models with unprecedented resolution in space and time.” #DARPA https://t.co/AJcBY5lHBV — Jacques Keel (@Fortean777) April 22, 2022
They are always trolling us with the names lol — Elf (@elf_whatever) April 22, 2022
However, building its antennas will also be tough because HF antennas optimised for such job are typically long. Larger antennas are more difficult to install in space, because they can cause drag in the lower atmosphere. The second technical area is concerned with an electron density model that will ultimately be validated using on-orbit information.
The density of the ionosphere can be changed by solar activity and the 11-year solar cycle, making it even harder to predict how radio transmissions will be impacted in this region. In addition, the sun's cycle is expected to hit in 2025, and it has already produced a number of X-class or huge flares in over the last weeks.
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DARPA officials said in a statement on April 22, " Because of the high density of charged particles that really can change the direction of radio transmissions, signal propagation inside the ionosphere is highly unpredictable."
Cover Image: NASA
