Program activities are conducted in the HAARP Research Station, a facility located near Gakona, Alaska.
The main device HAARP Station is the Ionospheric Research Instrument (IRI), a powerful high-frequency radio transmitter is used to modify the properties in a limited area of the ionosphere. The processes occurring in this area are analyzed by other instruments such as radar UHF, VHF and digital sounding , and fluxgate magnetometers and induction .
The project has been blamed by conspiracy theorists to cause a wide range of events, including numerous natural disasters. However, several scientists and scholars have commented that HAARP is an attractive target for such conspiracy because, in the words of computer scientist David Naiditch, “its purpose seems puzzling to the ignorant in science “
SURA, Ionospheric Heating Facility, is a research center of the ionosphere located near the small town of Vasilsursk about 100 km east of Nizhniy Novgorod , Russia. Sura is capable of radiating about 190 MW, effective radiated power (ERP) on short waves.
Similar to HAARP, SURA is equipped with powerful antennas that emit high-frequency radio waves into the ionosphere. The facility was officially opened in 1981 and has since been conducting experiments focused on studying the ionosphere’s behavior and its impact on radio wave propagation.
Some believe that the facility may also have the capability to influence the weather. Like HAARP, SURA has been the subject of numerous theories linking it to natural disasters and extreme weather events.
Initially under the Ministry of Defense, but this service is currently operated by the Radio Research Institute NIRFI in Nizhny Novgorod. The Sura facility was commissioned in 1981. With the use of this mechanism, Russian researchers studying the behavior of the ionosphere and the effect of generating emission of low frequency modulation on the ionosphere.
China And Russia Have Run Controversial Experiments That Modified Earth’s Atmosphere
China and Russia have jointly conducted a controversial series of experiments to modify Earth’s atmosphere with high-frequency radio waves.
From a Russian installation called the Sura Ionospheric Heating Facility [a] near the town of Vasilsursk, east of Moscow, scientists emitted high-frequency radio waves to manipulate the ionosphere, while the China Seismo‐Electromagnetic Satellite (CSES) [b] measured the effects on plasma disturbance from orbit.
[a] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sura_Ionospheric_Heating_Facility
It’s not the first time research like this [c] has been conducted, but news of the China-Russia developments – conveyed via a published paper [d] on the experiments, and a recent article in the South China Morning Post [e]– has ignited concerns over the potential military applications of this kind of science.
https://www.sciencealert.com/the-us-air-force-plans-to-plasma-bomb-the-skies-to-improve-global-radio-reception
That’s because the ionosphere [f], and the ionised gas (plasma) that inhabits it, is crucial to radio communication [g]. By selectively disturbing the charged particles that make up this part of the upper atmosphere, scientists or even governments could theoretically boost or block long-range radio signals.
[f] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ionosphere [g] https://www.sciencealert.com/the-us-air-force-plans-to-plasma-bomb-the-skies-to-improve-global-radio-receptionEven these preliminary experiments – conducted in June, and ostensibly designed as a test-case for future related ionosphere research – had extreme effects.
Professor Guo Lixin, dean of the school of physics and optoelectronic engineering at Xidian University in Xian and a leading scientist on ionosphere manipulation technology in China, said that the joint experimentation was extremely unusual.
“Such international cooperation is very rare for China,” said Guo, who was not involved in the experiment. “The technology involved is too sensitive.”
In one of the experiments, the affected area of ionosphere disturbance reportedly covered [h] 126,000 square kilometres (49,000 square miles). In another test, ionised gas in the atmosphere increased in heat by 100 degrees Celsius (212 degrees Fahrenheit).
[h] https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/2178214/china-and-russia-band-together-controversial-heating-experimentsFor their part, those involved claim the research is purely scientific, and harmless to the atmosphere.
“We are not playing God,” an unidentified researcher who asked to remain nameless told the South China Morning Post.
“We are not the only country teaming up with the Russians. Other countries have done similar things.”
On that score, at least, there’s no dispute.
The Sura base was established by the Soviet Union in the early 1980s, but is said to have been the inspiration for an even larger atmospheric heating facility in the US called the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP), which was built in Alaska about a decade later.
HAARP – which is a considerably more powerful ionospheric pump facility than Sura – was initially partly funded by the US military, but is now administered by the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
The US Air Force hasn’t given up on atmospheric manipulation though, and among other projects has in recent times investigated dropping plasma bombs [i] of charged particles into the upper atmosphere to see how that affects the ionosphere.
Not to be left out, China is also reportedly building an advanced ionosphere heater in the city of Sanya, on the island province of Hainan at the south of China, which the Post suggests could manipulate the ionosphere over the entire South China Sea.
There’s no proof of anything nefarious going on – although Russia has been accused by various parties of jamming GPS signals [j] that same year, and ionospheric manipulation experiments could hypothetically have been involved.
[j] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/12/russia-denies-blame-for-arctic-gps-interference
That said, even some in the ionosphere manipulation research community have found the recent announcements about the June experiments a little strange.
“Such international cooperation is very rare for China,” physicist and engineer Guo Lixin from China’s Xidian University, who was not involved in the experiments, told the Post.
“The technology involved is too sensitive.”
“The technology involved is too sensitive.”
The findings are reported in Earth and Planetary Physics.
Department of Space Physics, School of Electronic Information, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China
HAARP ionospheric tests conducted from Alaska – 8th to 10th May 2024
High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) is based in Alaska and it’s a high-power, high frequency (HF) transmitter for studying the ionosphere. The principal instrument is a phased array of 180 HF crossed-dipole antennas capable of radiating 3.6 megawatts into the upper atmosphere and ionosphere. Transmit frequencies are selectable in the range of 2.7 to 10 MHz.
The High Frequency Active Aurora Research Program or HAARP (research program of high-frequency active aurora) is an ionospheric program, funded by the Air Force and the U.S. Navy, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the University of Alaska . Its aim is to study the properties of the ionosphere and promote technological advances that enhance their ability to promote radio communications and surveillance systems (such as missile detection).
The research team announced that they will be carrying out tests from the 8th to the 10th of May 2024.
The press release is shown below and I’ve added a map to show location and distance.
Date: May 2, 2024
To: Amateur Radio & Radio Astronomy Communities
From: HAARP Program Office
Subject: Notice of Transmission
The High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) will be conducting a research campaign May 8-10 UTC, with operating times specified in the table below. Operating frequencies will vary, but all HAARP transmissions will be between 2.8 MHz and 10 MHz. Actual transmit days and times are highly variable based on real-time ionospheric and/or geomagnetic conditions. All information is subject to change.
This campaign is being conducted in support of research proposals from the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and is studying mechanisms for the detection of orbiting space debris. Space debris poses a major risk to all space operations, including manned spacecraft and communications satellites. The experiments being performed at HAARP will help identify ways to improve collision detection on satellites.
Note that these experiments will operate at frequencies based on the f0F2 frequency from the Gakona ionograms. In general, transmissions will be very close to the f0F2 frequency. There are no specific data collection requests from funded investigators, but reception reports are appreciated and may be submitted to uaf-gi-haarp AT alaska DOT edu or to: HAARP, PO Box 271, Gakona, AK 99586
The image above is an annotated ionogram from HAARP that describes features that may be of
interest. Note that f0F2 is calculated at the top left.
f0F2 is the critical frequency of the F2 layer of the Earth’s ionosphere. This is the frequency at
which radio signals stop refracting off the ionosphere and begin passing through to outer space.
For certain HAARP experiments that deal with interactions in the ionosphere, transmission
frequencies below f0F2 are desirable, while for other experiments (such as those involving high altitude satellites), staying above f0F2 is required.
Supplement to HAARP Notice of Transmission
General Information for HAARP Radio Enthusiasts:
1) The HAARP Ionospheric Research Instrument (IRI) transmits only in the frequency range 2.695 to 9.995 MHz,with certain frequencies blocked out as specified in the FCC license for call sign WI2XFX. The emission bandwidth may be up to 46 kHz wide, the actual value depending on the frequency and experiment;
2) The lower frequency transmissions many times are based on a harmonic of the local ionosphere’s gyro frequency, the actual frequency depending on the experiment. The fundamental gyro frequency above HAARP varies from roughly 1.5 MHz at lower altitudes to 1.2 MHz at higher altitudes.
3) Higher frequency transmissions many times are based on the critical plasma frequency for the F2 region (foF2), which is determined by the Gakona ionosonde. These higher transmission frequencies may be above, below or at the critical frequency depending on the experiment. Mid-range frequencies often are used for artificial airglow experiments. The critical plasma frequency in the vicinity of HAARP varies widely depending on, among other things, time of day, season and sunspot cycle;
4) One or two carriers are transmitted and one or both of the carriers are modulated. The types of modulation varies with the experiment requirements. Modulation may be AM, FM, LFM or a complex waveform or a time sequence of different modulations;
5) Most experiments depend on ionospheric and geomagnetic conditions that are mostly unpredictable. The transmission frequencies for a given experiment may change to track changes in those conditions with little or no notice;
6) A scheduled experiment that depends on certain ionospheric or geomagnetic conditions may be rescheduled or cancelled if the required conditions do not occur;
7) To request a HAARP QSL card, send reception reports to: HAARP, P.O. Box 271, Gakona, Alaska 99586 USA;
8) Additional information can be found on the HAARP webpage at: https://haarp.gi.alaska.edu/ .
Monitoring HAARP IRI transmissions with a Software Defined Radio Receiver:
1) Listeners with an SDR receiver capable of 8 MHz bandwidth can monitor the entire frequency band noted above;
2) Transmissions most often are programmed to Start at top of the minute, ie, HH:MM:00 but some start at 30seconds, ie, HH:MM:30. Transmissions usually Stop on the 30 second mark, ie, HH:MM:30 to allow time to retune the transmitter/antenna for the next experiment. There may be exceptions to the Start and Stop times;
3) When a carrier is seen to pop up on the SDR’s displayed spectra, the listener can identify the center
frequency using the SDR software and then reduce the bandwidth to further monitor, demodulate or analyze the signal;
4) If two SDRs are available, one can be used in a wideband mode to locate the signals and the other can be used in a narrowband mode to analyze, demodulate or monitor the specific signals;
File: HAARP Transmission Notice Supplement.docx, Revision 1.2, page 2
5) Since the maximum emission bandwidth is 46 kHz (±23 kHz), SDRs with a 50 kHz bandwidth setting are able to monitor the entire modulated signal after it is located. However, the center frequency may be stepped through a range of frequencies or may change according to experiment requirements to another, far removed frequency;
6) Not all experiments use the full 46 kHz bandwidth, some use only a pure carrier and some use single
sideband;
7) Some experiments require a transmitter On – transmitter Off cycle. The cycle times and On-Off ratios typically vary from experiment to experiment but Off times typically are minutes or fractions of a minute. Transmission On times can last from a couple minutes to a couple hours;
8) Radio propagation conditions and the IRI beam direction will affect the reception of the IRI transmissions or cause a fadeout at the receiving antenna location. Propagation conditions and beam directions can change significantly and rapidly during an experiment;
9) Some experiments require the IRI beam to be pointed along or near the local magnetic zenith. This means the beam is pointed parallel or nearly parallel to the local magnetic field lines. The magnetic zenith at the HAARP facility is approximately 75° elevation and 16° east of north;
10) Although the HAARP IRI transmits only in the HF range (see above), the transmissions can and some experiments are designed to generate ELF, SLF, ULF, and VLF emissions in the D/E-regions of the ionosphere. Other experiments may not be designed to generate these low frequency emissions but the emissions are generated as a side effect. Modulated heating of the D/E-region electrons by the HF transmissions in turn modulates the plasma conductivity, which generates a virtual antenna at altitudes between 70 and 85 km. Emissions up to 20 kHz have been demonstrated but most are below a few kilohertz. These low frequency emissions can propagate in the Earth-Ionosphere Waveguide or by other mechanisms, depending on frequency, and conceivably can travel great distances.
Source: EI7GL, Youtube, Wiley-Image, MDPI-Image, Twitter
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