New empirical Kp-based models for the equatorward and poleward boundaries of the auroral oval in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres were developed, with the purpose of reviewing the auroral ovals predicted by well-established Feldstein auroral oval model. The new models were derived from particle and energy flux measurements from six low-altitude (800-900 km) POES/MetOp satellites. The equatorward ...

In auroral research, it is necessary to accurately measure the time-shift differences between varying light sources. Such measurements can be carried out using two or more digital cameras, or between different regions of an image obtained using a single camera. An example of this is measurements of the time-shifts between prompt auroral emissions originating from different altitude regions during ...

Radar remote sensing is a key technology for monitoring sea ice. In this regard, passive microwave and Synthetic Aperture Radars (SARs) are the most important sensor types. This technology has been used for sea ice applications for four decades, but there are still many uncertainties related to sea ice monitoring by SAR. Some of these may be solved by multi-sensor observations, in which case other ...

Geomagnetic field models can be a useful tool for when and where there are no measurements available, or access is limited, because of a highly spatially uneven magnetometer network around the globe. The same can be said for altitudes above the ground, but below the ionospheric current layer, where there exist no in situ measurements at the point of writing. Modelled geomagnetic disturbances have ...

Sea ice thickness is an important parameter for modelling the sea ice mass balance, momentum and gas exchanges, and global energy budget. The interest of studies into thin sea ice has increased as trends in recent years show a increasing abundance in thin first year ice. Existing thin sea ice thickness products operate at resolutions down to 750 meters. Very high resolution (less than 100 meters) ...

The Smoke Particle Impact Detector (SPID), newly designed at the University of Tromsø, was launched from Andøya 09:13 UTC the 13. January 2019. SPID is designed to detect meteoric smoke particles (MSPs) in winter mesospheric conditions. The rocket had a velocity of 1600 ms-1 at ~55 km where the nosecone was separated. At ~ 60km, SPID detected a signal of 17nA on the middle plate. The dynamics of the ...

This thesis starts with a review of the evolution of space debris, what is consists of, how it is made, how it is detected and tracked, and why it is such an important topic. Some of the worst collisions have contributed to causing 49% of the total space debris. If the launch rate continues, the "Kessler Syndrome" might become a reality destroying our future outlook for space communication and ...

Plasma cloud formation from arcing is experimentally studied. The arcs are formed by a high voltage set-up in the space simulation chamber at UiT. The plasma clouds are observed as large structures in the time series recorded by Langmuir probe and reference probe. By using the method of conditional averaging, the structures are accentuated. The electron cloud formed by arcing was found to be ...

The primary focus of this thesis is the installation and characterization of an electron bombardment ion source for a Space Simulation Chamber (SSC). The goal is that the chamber can be used to test satellite and sounding rocket instrumentation, thus be capable of producing ionospheric plasma conditions, along with an ion beam that can simulate the velocity of a rocket or satellite relative to the ...

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate Arctic cirrus clouds. In this work, data from the ground-based lidar system at ALOMAR, Andøya Space Center. and the spaceborne lidar onboard the CALIPSO satellite is used. Cirrus clouds are an important factor in modeling climate changes, which is one of the major research fields of this time. Most of the cirrus cloud research concentrates on investigating ...