Theory of the Meteor height Distribution Obtained from Radio-Echo Observations I. Shower Meteors

Abstract

Apart from a slight influence of the directional properties of the aerial system, the form of the radio-echo height distribution for a homogeneous velocity group of meteors constituting a stream with a well-defined radiant point is found to be a function only of the atmospheric scale height and the mass distribution of the incident meteors. The relation between these parameters and the width of the height distribution (expressed as the r.m.s. deviation from the mean) is derived, hence if one is known the other may be determined from the observed meteor heights. The mean height corresponds to a value of the atmospheric pressure which is related to the physical properties of the meteors, their ionizing efficiency and velocity, and the radio-echo equipment parameters. The theory enables the observed dependence of the mean height on the velocity to be interpreted in terms of the variation of atmospheric pressure with height.