`Blackout´ of simultaneous HF skywave and VHF meteor burst communication links

The US Naval Undersea Warfare Center and the Phillips Laboratory conducted a joint measurement campaign in Greenland during May 1991. The experiment included simultaneous operation of HF channel probe and commercial VHF meteor burst (MB) radio links. On May 13th, a significant polar cap absorption (PCA) event occurred which apparently resulted in blackout of the HF link for 12 hours. The VHF MB link provided effective message communication during the PCA even when simultaneous skywave links monitored by the HF probe were inoperative. The authors describe the experimental configuration, present both HF skywave and VHF MB link performance during the PCA, and compare measured results with predictions