Model calculations of possible ionospheric backscatter echo area for a mid-latitude HF radar

HF ray path calculation is performed in order to identify possible ionospheric backscatter echo area for an HF radar at mid-latitude. The calculation is made on the basis of the R.M. Jones and J. J. Stephenson (U.S. Dept. of Commerce, OT Rep. 1/ 10, +31/) HF ray path tracing algorithm plus the IRI-,**+ ionosphere model. It is shown that depending on the local time and geomagnetic activity, the possible ionospheric backscatter regions have di#erent distributions. In any case the backscatter region is large enough, indicating the capability of a planned HF radar in Hokkaido (.-./ N, +.-.0 E), Japan. key words: ionospheric echoes, SuperDARN, mid-latitude, ray-path tracing