Method and apparatus for altering
a region in the earth's atmosphere, ionosphere,
and/or magnetosphere
"You take the blue pill and the story ends. You wake in your bed and you believe whatever you want to believe."
"You take the red pill and
you stay in Wonderland and I'll show you how deep the
rabbit-hole goes."
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United States Patent |
4,686,605 |
|
Eastlund |
August 11, 1987 |
http://164.195.100.11/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2
=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=/netahtml/srchnum.htm&r=1&f=
G&l=50&s1=4,686,605.WKU.&OS=PN/4,686,605&RS=PN/4,686,605
Abstract
A method and apparatus for altering at least one selected region which normally exists above the earth's surface. The region is excited by electron cyclotron resonance heating to thereby increase its charged particle density. In one embodiment, circularly polarized electromagnetic radiation is transmitted upward in a direction substantially parallel to and along a field line which extends through the region of plasma to be altered. The radiation is transmitted at a frequency which excites electron cyclotron resonance to heat and accelerate the charged particles. This increase in energy can cause ionization of neutral particles which are then absorbed as part of the region thereby increasing the charged particle density of the region.
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Inventors: |
Eastlund; Bernard J. (Spring, TX) |
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Assignee: |
APTI, Inc. (Los Angeles, CA) |
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Appl. No.: |
690333 |
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Filed: |
January 10, 1985 |
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Current U.S. Class: |
361/231; 89/1.11; 244/158R; 380/59 |
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Intern'l Class: |
H05B 006/64; H05C 003/00; H05H 001/46 |
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Field of Search: |
361/230,231 244/158 R 376/100 89/1.11 380/59 |
References Cited [Referenced By]
|
Other References
|
Primary Examiner: Cangialosi; Salvatore
Attorney, Agent or Firm: MacDonald; Roderick W.
Claims
I claim:
1. A method for altering at least one region normally existing above
the earth's surface with electromagnetic radiation using
naturally-occurring and diverging magnetic field lines of the earth
comprising transmitting first electromagnetic radiation at a frequency
between 20 and 7200 kHz from the earth's surface, said transmitting
being conducted essentially at the outset of transmission
substantially parallel to and along at least one of said field lines,
adjusting the frequency of said first radiation to a value which will
excite electron cyclotron resonance at an initial elevation at least
50 km above the earth's surface, whereby in the region in which said
electron cyclotron resonance takes place heating, further ionization,
and movement of both charged and neutral particles is effected, said
cyclotron resonance excitation of said region is continued until the
electron concentration of said region reaches a value of at least
10.sup.6 per cubic centimeter and has an ion energy of at least 2 ev.
2. The method of claim 1 including the step of providing artificial
particles in said at least one region which are excited by said
electron cyclotron resonance.
3. The method of claim 2 wherein said artificial particles are
provided by injecting same into said at least one region from an
orbiting satellite.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein said threshold excitation of electron
cyclotron resonance is about 1 watt per cubic centimeter and is
sufficient to cause movement of a plasma region along said diverging
magnetic field lines to an altitude higher than the altitude at which
said excitation was initiated.
5. The method of claim 4 wherein said rising plasma region pulls with
it a substantial portion of neutral particles of the atmosphere which
exist in or near said plasma region.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein there is provided at least one
separate source of second electromagnetic radiation, said second
radiation having at least one frequency different from said first
radiation, impinging said at least one second radiation on said region
while said region is undergoing electron cyclotron resonance
excitation caused by said first radiation.
7. The method of claim 6 wherein said second radiation has a frequency
which is absorbed by said region.
8. The method of claim 6 wherein said region is plasma in the
ionosphere and said second radiation excites plasma waves within said
ionosphere.
9. The method of claim 8 wherein said electron concentration reaches a
value of at least 10.sup.12 per cubic centimeter.
10. The method of claim 8 wherein said excitation of electron
cyclotron resonance is initially carried out within the ionosphere and
is continued for a time sufficient to allow said region to rise above
said ionosphere.
11. The method of claim 1 wherein said excitation of electron
cyclotron resonance is carried out above about 500 kilometers and for
a time of from 0.1 to 1200 seconds such that multiple heating of said
plasma region is achieved by means of stochastic heating in the
magnetosphere.
12. The method of claim 1 wherein said first electromagnetic radiation
is right hand circularly polarized in the northern hemisphere and left
hand circularly polarized in the southern hemisphere.
13. The method of claim 1 wherein said electromagnetic radiation is
generated at the site of a naturally-occurring hydrocarbon fuel
source, said fuel source being located in at least one of northerly or
southerly magnetic latitudes.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein said fuel source is natural gas and
electricity for generating said electromagnetic radiation is obtained
by burning said natural gas in at least one of magnetohydrodynamic,
gas turbine, fuel cell, and EGD electric generators located at the
site where said natural gas naturally occurs in the earth.
15. The method of claim 14 wherein said site of natural gas is within
the magnetic latitudes that encompass Alaska.
Description
DESCRIPTION
1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for altering at least
one selected region normally existing above the earth's surface and
more particularly relates to a method and apparatus for altering said
at least one region by initially transmitting electromagnetic
radiation from the earth's surface essentially parallel to and along
naturally-occurring, divergent magnetic field lines which extend from
the earth's surface through the region or regions to be altered.
2. Background Art
In the late 1950's, it was discovered that naturally-occuring belts
exist at high altitudes above the earth's surface, and it is now
established that these belts result from charged electrons and ions
becoming trapped along the magnetic lines of force (field lines) of
the earth's essentially dipole magnetic field. The trapped electrons
and ions are confined along the field lines between two magnetic
mirrors which exist at spaced apart points along those field lines.
The trapped electrons and ions move in helical paths around their
particular field lines and "bounce" back and forth between the
magnetic mirrors. These trapped electrons and ions can oscillate along
the field lines for long periods of time.
In the past several years, substantial effort has been made to
understand and explain the phenomena involved in belts of trapped
electrons and ions, and to explore possible ways to control and use
these phenomena for beneficial purposes. For example, in the late
1950's and early 1960's both the United States and U.S.S.R. detonated
a series of nuclear devices of various yields to generate large
numbers of charged particles at various altitudes, e.g., 200
kilometers (km) or greater. This was done in order to establish and
study artifical belts of trapped electrons and ions. These experiments
established that at least some of the extraneous electrons and ions
from the detonated devices did become trapped along field lines in the
earth's magnetosphere to form artificial belts which were stable for
prolonged periods of time. For a discussion of these experiments see
"The Radiation Belt and Magnetosphere", W. N. Hess, Blaisdell
Publishing Co., 1968, pps. 155 et sec.
Other proposals which have been advanced for altering existing belts
of trapped electrons and ions and/or establishing similar artificial
belts include injecting charged particles from a satellite carrying a
payload of radioactive beta-decay material or alpha emitters; and
injecting charged particles from a satellite-borne electron
accelerator. Still another approach is described in U.S. Pat. No.
4,042,196 wherein a low energy ionized gas, e.g., hydrogen, is
released from a synchronous orbiting satellite near the apex of a
radiation belt which is naturally-occurring in the earth's
magnetosphere to produce a substantial increase in energetic particle
precipitation and, under certain conditions, produce a limit in the
number of particles that can be stably trapped. This precipitation
effect arises from an enhancement of the whistler-mode and
ion-cyclotron mode interactions that result from the ionized gas or
"cold plasma" injection.
It has also been proposed to release large clouds of barium in the
magnetosphere so that photoionization will increase the cold plasma
density, thereby producing electron precipitation through enhanced
whistler-mode interactions.
However, in all of the above-mentioned approaches, the mechanisms
involved in triggering the change in the trapped particle phenomena
must be actually positioned within the affected zone, e.g., the
magnetosphere, before they can be actuated to effect the desired
change.
The earth's ionosphere is not considered to be a "trapped" belt since
there are few trapped particles therein. The term "trapped" herein
refers to situations where the force of gravity on the trapped
particles is balanced by magnetic forces rather than hydrostatic or
collisional forces. The charged electrons and ions in the ionosphere
also follow helical paths around magnetic field lines within the
ionosphere but are not trapped between mirrors, as in the case of the
trapped belts in the magnetosphere, since the gravitational force on
the particles is balanced by collisional or hydrostatic forces.
In recent years, a number of experiments have actually been carried
out to modify the ionosphere in some controlled manner to investigate
the possibility of a beneficial result. For detailed discussions of
these operations see the following papers: (1) Ionospheric
Modification Theory; G. Meltz and F. W. Perkins; (2) The Platteville
High Power Facility; Carrol et al.; (3) Arecibo Heating Experiments;
W. E. Gordon and H. C. Carlson, Jr.; and (4) Ionospheric Heating by
Powerful Radio Waves; Meltz et al., all published in Radio Science,
Vol. 9, No. 11, November, 1974, at pages 885-888; 889-894; 1041-1047;
and 1049-1063, respectively, all of which are incorporated herein by
reference. In such experiments, certain regions of the ionosphere are
heated to change the electron density and temperature within these
regions. This is accomplished by transmitting from earth-based
antennae high frequency electromagnetic radiation at a substantial
angle to, not parallel to, the ionosphere's magnetic field to heat the
ionospheric particles primarily by ohmic heating. The electron
temperature of the ionosphere has been raised by hundreds of degrees
in these experiments, and electrons with several electron volts of
energy have been produced in numbers sufficient to enhance airglow.
Electron concentrations have been reduced by a few percent, due to
expansion of the plasma as a result of increased temperature.
In the Elmo Bumpy Torus (EBT), a controlled fusion device at the Oak
Ridge National Laboratory, all heating is provided by microwaves at
the electron cyclotron resonance interaction. A ring of hot electrons
is formed at the earth's surface in the magnetic mirror by a
combination of electron cyclotron resonance and stochastic heating. In
the EBT, the ring electrons are produced with an average "temperature"
of 250 kilo electron volts or kev (2.5.times.10.sup.9 K) and a plasma
beta between 0.1 and 0.4; see, "A Theoretical Study of
Electron--Cyclotron Absorption in Elmo Bumpy Torus", Batchelor and
Goldfinger, Nuclear Fusion, Vol. 20, No. 4 (1980) pps. 403-418.
Electron cyclotron resonance heating has been used in experiments on
the earth's surface to produce and accelerate plasmas in a diverging
magnetic field. Kosmahl et al. showed that power was transferred from
the electromagnetic waves and that a fully ionized plasma was
accelerated with a divergence angle of roughly 13 degrees. Optimum
neutral gas density was 1.7.times.10.sup.14 per cubic centimeter; see,
"Plasma Acceleration with Microwaves Near Cyclotron Resonance",
Kosmahl et al., Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 38, No. 12, Nov.,
1967, pps. 4576-4582.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a method and apparatus for altering at
least one selected region which normally exists above the earth's
surface. The region is excited by electron cyclotron resonance heating
of electrons which are already present and/or artifically created in
the region to thereby increase the charged particle energy and
ultimately the density of the region.
In one embodiment this is done by transmitting circularly polarized
electromagnetic radiation from the earth's surface at or near the
location where a naturally-occurring dipole magnetic field (force)
line intersects the earth's surface. Right hand circular polarization
is used in the northern hemisphere and left hand circular polarization
is used in the southern hemisphere. The radiation is deliberately
transmitted at the outset in a direction substantially parallel to and
along a field line which extends upwardly through the region to be
altered. The radiation is transmitted at a frequency which is based on
the gyrofrequency of the charged particles and which, when applied to
the at least one region, excites electron cyclotron resonance within
the region or regions to heat and accelerate the charged particles in
their respective helical paths around and along the field line.
Sufficient energy is employed to cause ionization of neutral particles
(molecules of oxygen, nitrogen and the like, particulates, etc.) which
then become a part of the region thereby increasing the charged
particle density of the region. This effect can further be enhanced by
providing artificial particles, e.g., electrons, ions, etc., directly
into the region to be affected from a rocket, satellite, or the like
to supplement the particles in the naturally-occurring plasma. These
artificial particles are also ionized by the transmitted
electromagnetic radiation thereby increasing charged particle density
of the resulting plasma in the region.
In another embodiment of the invention, electron cyclotron resonance
heating is carried out in the selected region or regions at sufficient
power levels to allow a plasma present in the region to generate a
mirror force which forces the charged electrons of the altered plasma
upward along the force line to an altitude which is higher than the
original altitude. In this case the relevant mirror points are at the
base of the altered region or regions. The charged electrons drag ions
with them as well as other particles that may be present. Sufficient
power, e.g., 10.sup.15 joules, can be applied so that the altered
plasma can be trapped on the field line between mirror points and will
oscillate in space for prolonged periods of time. By this embodiment,
a plume of altered plasma can be established at selected locations for
communication modification or other purposes.
In another embodiment, this invention is used to alter at least one
selected region of plasma in the ionosphere to establish a defined
layer of plasma having an increased charged particle density. Once
this layer is established, and while maintaining the transmission of
the main beam of circularly polarized electromagnetic radiation, the
main beam is modulated and/or at least one second different, modulated
electromagnetic radiation beam is transmitted from at least one
separate source at a different frequency which will be absorbed in the
plasma layer. The amplitude of the frequency of the main beam and/or
the second beam or beams is modulated in resonance with at least one
known oscillation mode in the selected region or regions to excite the
known oscillation mode to propagate a known frequency wave or waves
throughout the ionosphere.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The actual construction, operation, and apparent advantages of this
invention will be better understood by referring to the drawings in
which like numerals identify like parts and in which:
FIG. 1 is a simplified schematical view of the earth (not to scale)
with a magnetic field (force) line along which the present invention
is carried out;
FIG. 2 is one embodiment within the present invention in which a
selected region of plasma is raised to a higher altitude;
FIG. 3 is a simplified, idealized representation of a physical
phenomenon involved in the present invention; and
FIG. 4 is a schematic view of another embodiment within the present
invention.
FIG. 5 is a schematic view of an apparatus embodiment within this
invention .
BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
The earth's magnetic field is somewhat analogous to a dipole bar
magnet. As such, the earth's magnetic field contains numerous
divergent field or force lines, each line intersecting the earth's
surface at points on opposite sides of the Equator. The field lines
which intersect the earth's surface near the poles have apexes which
lie at the furthest points in the earth's magnetosphere while those
closest to the Equator have apexes which reach only the lower portion
of the magnetosphere.
At various altitudes above the earth's surface, e.g., in both the
ionosphere and the magnetosphere, plasma is naturally present along
these field lines. This plasma consists of equal numbers of positively
and negatively charged particles (i.e., electrons and ions) which are
guided by the field line. It is well established that a charged
particle in a magnetic field gyrates about field lines, the center of
gyration at any instance being called the "guiding center" of the
particle. As the gyrating particle moves along a field line in a
uniform field, it will follow a helical path about its guiding center,
hence linear motion, and will remain on the field line. Electrons and
ions both follow helical paths around a field line but rotate in
opposite directions. The frequencies at which the electrons and ions
rotate about the field line are called gyromagnetic frequencies or
cyclotron frequencies because they are identical with the expression
for the angular frequencies of gyration of particles in a cyclotron.
The cyclotron frequency of ions in a given magnetic field is less than
that of electrons, in inverse proportion to their masses.
If the particles which form the plasma along the earth's field lines
continued to move with a constant pitch angle, often designated
"alpha", they would soon impact on the earth's surface. Pitch angle
alpha is defined as the angle between the direction of the earth's
magnetic field and the velocity (V) of the particle. However, in
converging force fields, the pitch angle does change in such a way as
to allow the particle to turn around and avoid impact. Consider a
particle moving along a field line down toward the earth. It moves
into a region of increasing magnetic field strength and therefore sine
alpha increases. But sine alpha can only increase to 1.0, at which
point, the particle turns around and starts moving up along the field
line, and alpha decreases. The point at which the particle turns
around is called the mirror point, and there alpha equals ninety
degrees. This process is repeated at the other end of the field line
where the same magnetic field strength value B, namely Bm, exists. The
particle again turns around and this is called the "conjugate point"
of the original mirror point. The particle is therefore trapped and
bounces between the two magnetic mirrors. The particle can continue
oscillating in space in this manner for long periods of time. The
actual place where a particle will mirror can be calculated from the
following:
sin.sup.2 alpha.sub.o =B.sub.o /B.sub.m (1)
wherein:
alpha.sub.o =equatorial pitch angle of particle
B.sub.o =equatorial field strength on a particular field line
B.sub.m =field strength at the mirror point
Recent discoveries have established that there are substantial regions
of naturally trapped particles in space which are commonly called
"trapped radiation belts". These belts occur at altitudes greater than
about 500 km and accordingly lie in the magnetosphere and mostly above
the ionosphere.
The ionosphere, while it may overlap some of the trapped-particle
belts, is a region in which hydrostatic forces govern its particle
distribution in the gravitational field. Particle motion within the
ionosphere is governed by both hydrodynamic and electrodynamic forces.
While there are few trapped particles in the ionosphere, nevertheless,
plasma is present along field lines in the ionosphere. The charged
particles which form this plasma move between collisions with other
particles along similar helical paths around the field lines and
although a particular particle may diffuse downward into the earth's
lower atmosphere or lose energy and diverge from its original field
line due to collisions with other particles, these charged particles
are normally replaced by other available charged particles or by
particles that are ionized by collision with said particle. The
electron density (N.sub.e) of the plasma will vary with the actual
conditions and locations involved. Also, neutral particles, ions, and
electrons are present in proximity to the field lines.
The production of enhanced ionization will also alter the distribution
of atomic and molecular constituents of the atmosphere, most notably
through increased atomic nitrogen concentration. The upper atmosphere
is normally rich in atomic oxygen (the dominant atmospheric
constituent above 200 km altitude), but atomic nitrogen is normally
relatively rare. This can be expected to manifest itself in increased
airglow, among other effects.
As known in plasma physics, the characteristics of a plasma can be
altered by adding energy to the charged particles or by ionizing or
exciting additional particles to increase the density of the plasma.
One way to do this is by heating the plasma which can be accomplished
in different ways, e.g., ohmic, magnetic compression, shock waves,
magnetic pumping, electron cyclotron resonance, and the like.
Since electron cyclotron resonance heating is involved in the present
invention, a brief discussion of same is in order. Increasing the
energy of electrons in a plasma by invoking electron cyclotron
resonance heating, is based on a principle similar to that utilized to
accelerate charged particles in a cyclotron. If a plasma is confined
by a static axial magnetic field of strength B, the charged particles
will gyrate about the lines of force with a frequency given, in hertz,
as f.sub.g =1.54.times.10.sup.3 B/A, where: B=magnetic field strength
in gauss, and A=mass number of the ion.
Suppose a time-varying field of this frequency is superimposed on the
static field B confining the plasma, by passage of a radiofrequency
current through a coil which is concentric with that producing the
axial field, then in each half-cycle of their rotation about the field
lines, the charged particles acquire energy from the oscillating
electric field associated with the radio frequency. For example, if B
is 10,000 gauss, the frequency of the field which is in resonance with
protons in a plasma is 15.4 megahertz.
As applied to electrons, electron cyclotron resonance heating requires
an oscillating field having a definite frequency determined by the
strength of the confining field. The radio-frequency radiation
produces time-varying fields (electric and magnetic), and the electric
field accelerates the charged particle. The energized electrons share
their energy with ions and neutrals by undergoing collisions with
these particles, thereby effectively raising the temperature of the
electrons, ions, and neutrals. The apportionment of energy among these
species is determined by collision frequencies. For a more detailed
understanding of the physics involved, see "Controlled Thermonuclear
Reactions", Glasstone and Lovberg, D. Van Nostrand Company, Inc.,
Princeton, N.J., 1960 and "The Radiation Belt and Magnetosphere",
Hess, Blaisdell Publishing Company, 1968, both of which are
incorporated herein by reference.
Referring now to the drawings, the present invention provides a method
and apparatus for altering at least one region of plasma which lies
along a field line, particularly when it passes through the ionosphere
and/or magnetosphere. FIG. 1 is a simplified illustration of the earth
10 and one of its dipole magnetic force or field lines 11. As will be
understood, line 11 may be any one of the numerous naturally existing
field lines and the actual geographical locations 13 and 14 of line 11
will be chosen based on a particular operation to be carried out. The
actual locations at which field lines intersect the earth's surface is
documented and is readily ascertainable by those skilled in the art.
Line 11 passes through region R which lies at an altitude above the
earth's surface. A wide range of altitudes are useful given the power
that can be employed by the practice of this invention. The electron
cyclotron resonance heating effect can be made to act on electrons
anywhere above the surface of the earth. These electrons may be
already present in the atmosphere, ionosphere, and/or magnetosphere of
the earth, or can be artificially generated by a variety of means such
as x-ray beams, charged particle beams, lasers, the plasma sheath
surrounding an object such as a missile or meteor, and the like.
Further, artificial particles, e.g., electrons, ions, etc., can be
injected directly into region R from an earth-launched rocket or
orbiting satellite carrying, for example, a payload of radioactive
beta-decay material; alpha emitters; an electron accelerator; and/or
ionized gases such as hydrogen; see U.S. Pat. No. 4,042,196. The
altitude can be greater than about 50 km if desired, e.g., can be from
about 50 km to about 800 km, and, accordingly may lie in either the
ionosphere or the magnetosphere or both. As explained above, plasma
will be present along line 11 within region R and is represented by
the helical line 12. Plasma 12 is comprised of charged particles
(i.e., electrons and ions) which rotate about opposing helical paths
along line 11.
Antenna 15 is positioned as close as is practical to the location 14
where line 11 intersects the earth's surface. Antenna 15 may be of any
known construction for high directionality, for example, a phased
array, beam spread angle (.theta.) type. See "The MST Radar at Poker
Flat, Alaska", Radio Science, Vol. 15, No. 2, Mar.-Apr. 1980, pps.
213-223, which is incorporated herein by reference. Antenna 15 is
coupled to transmitter 16 which generates a beam of high frequency
electromagnetic radiation at a wide range of discrete frequencies,
e.g., from about 20 to about 1800 kilohertz (kHz).
Transmitter 16 is powered by power generator means 17 which is
preferably comprised of one or more large, commercial electrical
generators. Some embodiments of the present invention require large
amounts of power, e.g., up to 10.sup.9 to 10.sup.11 watts, in
continuous wave or pulsed power. Generation of the needed power is
within the state of the art. Although the electrical generators
necessary for the practice of the invention can be powered in any
known manner, for example, by nuclear reactors, hydroelectric
facilities, hydrocarbon fuels, and the like, this invention, because
of its very large power requirement in certain applications, is
particularly adapted for use with certain types of fuel sources which
naturally occur at strategic geographical locations around the earth.
For example, large reserves of hydrocarbons (oil and natural gas)
exist in Alaska and Canada. In northern Alaska, particularly the North
Slope region, large reserves are currently readily available. Alaska
and northern Canada also are ideally located geographically as to
magnetic latitudes. Alaska provides easy access to magnetic field
lines that are especially suited to the practice of this invention,
since many field lines which extend to desirable altitudes for this
invention intersect the earth in Alaska. Thus, in Alaska, there is a
unique combination of large, accessible fuel sources at desirable
field line intersections. Further, a particularly desirable fuel
source for the generation of very large amounts of electricity is
present in Alaska in abundance, this source being natural gas. The
presence of very large amounts of clean-burning natural gas in Alaskan
latitudes, particularly on the North Slope, and the availability of
magnetohydrodynamic (MHD), gas turbine, fuel cell, electrogasdynamic (EGD)
electric generators which operate very efficiently with natural gas
provide an ideal power source for the unprecedented power requirements
of certain of the applications of this invention. For a more detailed
discussion of the various means for generating electricity from
hydrocarbon fuels, see "Electrical Aspects of Combustion", Lawton and
Weinberg, Clarendon Press, 1969. For example, it is possible to
generate the electricity directly at the high frequency needed to
drive the antenna system. To do this, typically the velocity of flow
of the combustion gases (v), past magnetic field perturbation of
dimension d (in the case of MHD), follow the rule:
v=df
where f is the frequency at which electricity is generated. Thus, if
v=1.78.times.10.sup.6 cm/sec and d=1 cm then electricity would be
generated at a frequency of 1.78 mHz.
Put another way, in Alaska, the right type of fuel (natural gas) is
naturally present in large amounts and at just the right magnetic
latitudes for the most efficient practice of this invention, a truly
unique combination of circumstances. Desirable magnetic latitudes for
the practice of this invention interest the earth's surface both
northerly and southerly of the equator, particularly desirable
latitudes being those, both northerly and southerly, which correspond
in magnitude with the magnetic latitudes that encompass Alaska.
Referring now to FIG. 2 a first ambodiment is illustrated where a
selected region R.sub.1 of plasma 12 is altered by electron cyclotron
resonance heating to accelerate the electrons of plasma 12, which are
following helical paths along field line 11.
To accomplish this result, electromagnetic radiation is transmitted at
the outset, essentially parallel to line 11 via antenna 15 as right
hand circularly polarized radiation wave 20. Wave 20 has a frequency
which will excite electron cyclotron resonance with plasma 12 at its
initial or original altitude. This frequency will vary depending on
the electron cyclotron resonance of region R.sub.1 which, in turn, can
be determined from available data based on the altitudes of region
R.sub.1, the particular field line 11 being used, the strength of the
earth's magnetic field, etc. Frequencies of from about 20 to about
7200 kHz, preferably from about 20 to about 1800 kHz can be employed.
Also, for any given application, there will be a threshhold (minimum
power level) which is needed to produce the desired result. The
minimum power level is a function of the level of plasma production
and movement required, taking into consideration any loss processes
that may be dominant in a particular plasma or propagation path.
As electron cyclotron resonance is established in plasma 12, energy is
transferred from the electromagnetic radiation 20 into plasma 12 to
heat and accelerate the electrons therein and, subsequently, ions and
neutral particles. As this process continues, neutral particles which
are present within R.sub.1 are ionized and absorbed into plasma 12 and
this increases the electron and ion densities of plasma 12. As the
electron energy is raised to values of about 1 kilo electron volt (kev),
the generated mirror force (explained below) will direct the excited
plasma 12 upward along line 11 to form a plume R.sub.2 at an altitude
higher than that of R.sub.1.
Plasma acceleration results from the force on an electron produced by
a nonuniform static magnetic field (B). The force, called the mirror
force, is given by
F=-.mu..gradient.B (2)
where .mu. is the electron magnetic moment and .gradient. B is the
gradient of the magnetic field, .mu. being further defined as:
W.sub..perp. /B=mV.sub..perp..sup.2 /2B
where W.sub..perp. is the kinetic energy in the direction
perpendicular to that of the magnetic field lines and B is the
magnetic field strength at the line of force on which the guiding
center of the particle is located. The force as represented by
equation (2) is the force which is responsible for a particle obeying
equation (1).
Since the magnetic field is divergent in region R.sub.1, it can be
shown that the plasma will move upwardly from the heating region as
shown in FIG. 1 and further it can be shown that
1/2M.sub.e V.sub.e.perp..sup.2 (x).apprxeq.1/2M.sub.e V.sub.e.perp..sup.2
(Y)+1/2M.sub.i V.sub.i.parallel..sup.2 (Y) (3)
where the left hand side is the initial electron transverse kinetic
energy; the first term on the right is the transverse electron kinetic
energy at some point (Y) in the expanded field region, while the final
term is the ion kinetic energy parallel to B at point (Y). This last
term is what constitutes the desired ion flow. It is produced by an
electrostatic field set up by electrons which are accelerated
according to Equation (2) in the divergent field region and pulls ions
along with them. Equation (3) ignores electron kinetic energy parallel
to B because V.sub.e.parallel. .apprxeq.V.sub.i.parallel., so the bulk
of parallel kinetic energy resides in the ions because of their
greater masses. For example, if an electromagnetic energy flux of from
about 1 to about 10 watts per square centimeter is applied to region
R, whose altitude is 115 km, a plasma having a density (N.sub.e) of
10.sup.12 per cubic centimeter will be generated and moved upward to
region R.sub.2 which has an altitude of about 1000 km. The movement of
electrons in the plasma is due to the mirror force while the ions are
moved by ambipolar diffusion (which results from the electrostatic
field). This effectively "lifts" a layer of plasma 12 from the
ionosphere and/or magnetosphere to a higher elevation R.sub.2. The
total energy required to create a plasma with a base area of 3 square
kilometers and a height of 1000 km is about 3.times.10.sup.13 joules.
FIG. 3 is an idealized representation of movement of plasma 12 upon
excitation by electron cyclotron resonance within the earth's
divergent force field. Electrons (e) are accelerated to velocities
required to generate the necessary mirror force to cause their upward
movement. At the same time neutral particles (n) which are present
along line 11 in region R.sub.1 are ionized and become part of plasma
12. As electrons (e) move upward along line 11, they drag ions (i) and
neutrals (n) with them but at an angle .theta. of about 13 degrees to
field line 11. Also, any particulates that may be present in region
R.sub.1, will be swept upwardly with the plasma. As the charged
particles of plasma 12 move upward, other particles such as neutrals
within or below R.sub.1, move in to replace the upwardly moving
particles. These neutrals, under some conditions, can drag with them
charged particles.
For example, as a plasma moves upward, other particles at the same
altitude as the plasma move horizontally into the region to replace
the rising plasma and to form new plasma. The kinetic energy developed
by said other particles as they move horizontally is, for example, on
the same order of magnitude as the total zonal kinetic energy of
stratospheric winds known to exist.
Referring again to FIG. 2, plasma 12 in region R.sub.1 is moved upward
along field line 11. The plasma 12 will then form a plume
(cross-hatched area in FIG. 2) which will be relatively stable for
prolonged periods of time. The exact period of time will vary widely
and be determined by gravitational forces and a combination of
radiative and diffusive loss terms. In the previous detailed example,
the calculations were based on forming a plume by producing 0.sup.+
energies of 2 ev/particle. About 10 ev per particle would be required
to expand plasma 12 to apex point C (FIG. 1). There at least some of
the particles of plasma 12 will be trapped and will oscillate between
mirror points along field line 11. This oscillation will then allow
additional heating of the trapped plasma 12 by stochastic heating
which is associated with trapped and oscillating particles. See "A New
Mechanism for Accelerating Electrons in the Outer Ionosphere" by R. A.
Helliwell and T. F. Bell, Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 65,
No. 6, June, 1960. This is preferably carried out at an altitude of at
least 500 km.
The plasma of the typical example might be employed to modify or
disrupt microwave transmissions of satellites. If less than total
black-out of transmission is desired (e.g., scrambling by phase
shifting digital signals), the density of the plasma (N.sub.e) need
only be at least about 10.sup.6 per cubic centimeter for a plasma
orginating at an altitude of from about 250 to about 400 km and
accordingly less energy (i.e., electromagnetic radiation), e.g.,
10.sup.8 joules need be provided. Likewise, if the density N.sub.e is
on the order of 10.sup.8, a properly positioned plume will provide a
reflecting surface for VHF waves and can be used to enhance, interfere
with, or otherwise modify communication transmissions. It can be seen
from the foregoing that by appropriate application of various aspects
of this invention at strategic locations and with adequate power
sources, a means and method is provided to cause interference with or
even total disruption of communications over a very large portion of
the earth. This invention could be employed to disrupt not only land
based communications, both civilian and military, but also airborne
communications and sea communications (both surface and subsurface).
This would have significant military implications, particularly as a
barrier to or confusing factor for hostile missiles or airplanes. The
belt or belts of enhanced ionization produced by the method and
apparatus of this invention, particularly if set up over Northern
Alaska and Canada, could be employed as an early warning device, as
well as a communications disruption medium. Further, the simple
ability to produce such a situation in a practical time period can by
itself be a deterring force to hostile action. The ideal combination
of suitable field lines intersecting the earth's surface at the point
where substantial fuel sources are available for generation of very
large quantitities of electromagnetic power, such as the North Slope
of Alaska, provides the wherewithal to accomplish the foregoing in a
practical time period, e.g., strategic requirements could necessitate
achieving the desired altered regions in time periods of two minutes
or less and this is achievable with this invention, especially when
the combination of natural gas and magnetohydrodynamic, gas turbine,
fuel cell and/or EGD electric generators are employed at the point
where the useful field lines intersect the earth's surface. One
feature of this invention which satisfies a basic requirement of a
weapon system, i.e., continuous checking of operability, is that small
amounts of power can be generated for operability checking purposes.
Further, in the exploitation of this invention, since the main
electromagnetic beam which generates the enhanced ionized belt of this
invention can be modulated itself and/or one or more additional
electromagnetic radiation waves can be impinged on the ionized region
formed by this invention as will be described in greater detail herein
after with respect to FIG. 4, a substantial amount of randomly
modulated signals of very large power magnitude can be generated in a
highly nonlinear mode. This can cause confusion of or interference
with or even complete disruption of guidance systems employed by even
the most sophisticated of airplanes and missiles. The ability to
employ and transmit over very wide areas of the earth a plurality of
electromagnetic waves of varying frequencies and to change same at
will in a random manner, provides a unique ability to interfere with
all modes of communications, land, sea, and/or air, at the same time.
Because of the unique juxtaposition of usable fuel source at the point
where desirable field lines intersect the earth's surface, such wide
ranging and complete communication interference can be achieved in a
resonably short period of time. Because of the mirroring phenomenon
discussed hereinabove, it can also be prolonged for substantial time
periods so that it would not be a mere transient effect that could
simply be waited out by an opposing force. Thus, this invention
provides the ability to put unprecedented amounts of power in the
earth's atmosphere at strategic locations and to maintain the power
injection level, particularly if random pulsing is employed, in a
manner far more precise and better controlled than heretofore
accomplished by the prior art, particularly by the detonation of
nuclear devices of various yeilds at various altitudes. Where the
prior art approaches yielded merely transitory effects, the unique
combination of fuel and desirable field lines at the point where the
fuel occurs allows the establishment of, compared to prior art
approaches, precisely controlled and long-lasting effects which
cannot, practically speaking, simply be waited out. Further, by
knowing the frequencies of the various electromagnetic beams employed
in the practice of this invention, it is possible not only to
interfere with third party communications but to take advantage of one
or more such beams to carry out a communications network even though
the rest of the world's communications are disrupted. Put another way,
what is used to disrupt another's communications can be employed by
one knowledgeable of this invention as a communications network at the
same time. In addition, once one's own communication network is
established, the far-reaching extent of the effects of this invention
could be employed to pick up communication signals of other for
intelligence purposes. Thus, it can be seen that the disrupting
effects achievable by this invention can be employed to benefit by the
party who is practicing this invention since knowledge of the various
electromagnetic waves being employed and how they will vary in
frequency and magnitude can be used to an advantage for positive
communication and eavesdropping purposes at the same time. However,
this invention is not limited to locations where the fuel source
naturally exists or where desirable field lines naturally intersect
the earth's surface. For example, fuel, particularly hydrocarbon fuel,
can be transported by pipeline and the like to the location where the
invention is to be practiced.
FIG. 4 illustrates another embodiment wherein a selected region of
plasma R.sub.3 which lies within the earth's ionosphere is altered to
increase the density thereof whereby a relatively stable layer 30 of
relatively dense plasma is maintained within region R.sub.3.
Electromagnetic radiation is transmitted at the outset essentially
parallel to field line 11 via antenna 15 as a right hand circularly
polarized wave and at a frequency (e.g., 1.78 megahertz when the
magnetic field at the desired altitude is 0.66 gauss) capable of
exciting electron cyclotron resonance in plasma 12 at the particular
altitude of plasma 12. This causes heating of the particles
(electrons, ions, neutrals, and particulates) and ionization of the
uncharged particles adjacent line 11, all of which are absorbed into
plasma 12 to increase the density thereof. The power transmitted,
e.g., 2.times.10.sup.6 watts for up to 2 minutes heating time, is less
than that required to generate the mirror force F required to move
plasma 12 upward as in the previous embodiment.
While continuing to transmit electromagnetic radiation 20 from antenna
15, a second electromagnetic radiation beam 31, which is at a defined
frequency different from the radiation from antenna 15, is transmitted
from one or more second sources via antenna 32 into layer 30 and is
absorbed into a portion of layer 30 (cross-hatched area in FIG. 4).
The electromagnetic radiation wave from antenna 32 is amplitude
modulated to match a known mode of oscillation f.sub.3 in layer 30.
This creates a resonance in layer 30 which excites a new plasma wave
33 which also has a frequency of f.sub.3 and which then propogates
through the ionosphere. Wave 33 can be used to improve or disrupt
communications or both depending on what is desired in a particular
application. Of course, more than one new wave 33 can be generated and
the various new waves can be modulated at will and in a highly
nonlinear fashion.
FIG. 5 shows apparatus useful in this invention, particularly when
those applications of this invention are employed which require
extremely large amounts of power. In FIG. 5 there is shown the earth's
surface 40 with a well 41 extending downwardly thereinto until it
penetrates hydrocarbon producing reservoir 42. Hydrocarbon reservoir
42 produces natural gas alone or in combination with crude oil.
Hydrocarbons are produced from reservoir 42 through well 41 and
wellhead 43 to a treating system 44 by way of pipe 45. In treater 44,
desirable liquids such as crude oil and gas condensates are separated
and recovered by way of pipe 46 while undesirable gases and liquids
such as water, H.sub.2 S, and the like are separated by way of pipe
47. Desirable gases such as carbon dioxide are separated by way of
pipe 48, and the remaining natural gas stream is removed from treater
44 by way of pipe 49 for storage in conventional tankage means (not
shown) for future use and/or use in an electrical generator such as a
magnetohydrodynamic, gas turbine, fuel cell or EGD generator 50. Any
desired number and combination of different types of electric
generators can be employed in the practice of this invention. The
natural gas is burned in generator 50 to produce substantial
quantities of electricity which is then stored and/or passed by way of
wire 51 to a transmitter 52 which generates the electromagnetic
radiation to be used in the method of this invention. The
electromagnetic radiation is then passed by way of wire 53 to antenna
54 which is located at or near the end of field line 11. Antenna 54
sends circularly polarized radiation wave 20 upwards along field line
11 to carry out the various methods of this invention as described
hereinabove.
Of course, the fuel source need not be used in its naturally-occurring
state but could first be converted to another second energy source
form such as hydrogen, hydrazine and the like, and electricity then
generated from said second energy source form.
It can be seen from the foregoing that when desirable field line 11
intersects earth's surface 40 at or near a large naturally-occurring
hydrocarbon source 42, exceedingly large amounts of power can be very
efficiently produced and transmitted in the direction of field lines.
This is particularly so when the fuel source is natural gas and
magnetohydrodynamic generators are employed. Further, this can all be
accomplished in a relatively small physical area when there is the
unique coincidence of fuel source 42 and desirable field line 11. Of
course, only one set of equipment is shown in FIG. 5 for sake of
simplicity. For a large hydrocarbon reservoir 42, a plurality of wells
41 can be employed to feed one or more storage means and/or treaters
and as large a number of generators 55 as needed to power one or more
transmitters 52 and one or more antennas 54. Since all of the
apparatus 44 through 54 can be employed and used essentially at the
sight where naturally-occurring fuel source 42 is located, all the
necessary electromagnetic radiation 20 is generated essentially at the
same location as fuel source 42. This provides for a maximum amount of
usable electromagnetic radiation 20 since there are no significant
storage or transportation losses to be incurred. In other words, the
apparatus is brought to the sight of the fuel source where desirable
field line 11 intersects the earth's surface 40 on or near the
geographical location of fuel source 42, fuel source 42 being at a
desirable magnetic latitude for the practice of this invention, for
example, Alaska.
The generation of electricity by motion of a conducting fluid through
a magnetic field, i.e., magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), provides a method
of electric power generation without moving mechanical parts and when
the conducting fluid is a plasma formed by combustion of a fuel such
as natural gas, an idealized combination of apparatus is realized
since the very clean-burning natural gas forms the conducting plasma
in an efficient manner and the thus formed plasma, when passed through
a magnetic field, generates electricity in a very efficient manner.
Thus, the use of fuel source 42 to generate a plasma by combustion
thereof for the generation of electricity essentially at the site of
occurrence of the fuel source is unique and ideal when high power
levels are required and desirable field lines 11 intersect the earth's
surface 40 at or near the site of fuel source 42. A particular
advantage for MHD generators is that they can be made to generate
large amounts of power with a small volume, light weight device. For
example, a 1000 megawatt MHD generator can be construed using
superconducting magnets to weigh roughly 42,000 pounds and can be
readily air lifted.
This invention has a phenomenal variety of possible ramifications and
potential future developments. As alluded to earlier, missile or
aircraft destruction, deflection, or confusion could result,
particularly when relativistic particles are employed. Also, large
regions of the atmosphere could be lifted to an unexpectedly high
altitude so that missiles encounter unexpected and unplanned drag
forces with resultant destruction or deflection of same. Weather
modification is possible by, for example, altering upper atmosphere
wind patterns or altering solar absorption patterns by constructing
one or more plumes of atmospheric particles which will act as a lens
or focusing device. Also as alluded to earlier, molecular
modifications of the atmosphere can take place so that positive
environmental effects can be achieved. Besides actually changing the
molecular composition of an atmospheric region, a particular molecule
or molecules can be chosen for increased presence. For example, ozone,
nitrogen, etc. concentrations in the atmosphere could be artificially
increased. Similarly, environmental enhancement could be achieved by
causing the breakup of various chemical entities such as carbon
dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides, and the like. Transportation
of entities can also be realized when advantage is taken of the drag
effects caused by regions of the atmosphere moving up along diverging
field lines. Small micron sized particles can be then transported,
and, under certain circumstances and with the availability of
sufficient energy, larger particles or objects could be similarly
affected. Particles with desired characteristics such as tackiness,
reflectivity, absorptivity, etc., can be transported for specific
purposes or effects. For example, a plume of tacky particles could be
established to increase the drag on a missile or satellite passing
therethrough. Even plumes of plasma having substantially less charged
particle density than described above will produce drag effects on
missiles which will affect a lightweight (dummy) missile in a manner
substantially different than a heavy (live) missile and this affect
can be used to distinguish between the two types of missiles. A moving
plume could also serve as a means for supplying a space station or for
focusing vast amount of sunlight on selected portions of the earth.
Surveys of global scope could also be realized because the earth's
natural magnetic field could be significantly altered in a controlled
manner by plasma beta effects resulting in, for example, improved
magnetotelluric surveys. Electromagnetic pulse defenses are also
possible. The earth's magnetic field could be decreased or disrupted
at appropriate altitudes to modify or eliminate the magnetic field in
high Compton electron generation (e.g., from high altitude nuclear
bursts) regions. High intensity, well controlled electrical fields can
be provided in selected locations for various purposes. For example,
the plasma sheath surrounding a missile or satellite could be used as
a trigger for activating such a high intensity field to destroy the
missile or satellite. Further, irregularities can be created in the
ionosphere which will interfere with the normal operation of various
types of radar, e.g., synthetic aperture radar. The present invention
can also be used to create artificial belts of trapped particles which
in turn can be studied to determine the stability of such parties.
Still further, plumes in accordance with the present invention can be
formed to simulate and/or perform the same functions as performed by
the detonation of a "heave" type nuclear device without actually
having to detonate such a device. Thus it can be seen that the
ramifications are numerous, far-reaching, and exceedingly varied in
usefulness.