IONOSPHERE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does ionosphere mean? 

• IONOSPHERE (noun)
  The noun IONOSPHERE has 1 sense:

1. the outer region of the Earth's atmosphere; contains a high concentration of free electrons

  Familiarity information: IONOSPHERE used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• IONOSPHERE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The outer region of the Earth's atmosphere; contains a high concentration of free electrons

Classified under:

Nouns denoting spatial position

Hypernyms ("ionosphere" is a kind of...):

part; region (the extended spatial location of something)

Meronyms (parts of "ionosphere"):

D-layer; D region (the lowest region of the ionosphere (35 to 50 miles up) that reflects low-frequency radio waves)

Appleton layer; F layer; F region (the highest region of the ionosphere (from 90 to 600 miles up) which contains the highest concentration of free electrons and is most useful for long-range radio transmission)

E layer; E region; Heaviside layer; Kennelly-Heaviside layer (a region of the ionosphere (from 50 to 90 miles up) that reflects radio waves of medium length)

Holonyms ("ionosphere" is a part of...):

air; atmosphere (the mass of air surrounding the Earth)

 Context examples 

They analyzed the light to determine the amount of rain from the ring and its effects on Saturn’s ionosphere.

(Saturn is Losing Its Rings, NASA)

The storm was observed to affect the ionosphere in all of Earth's northern latitudes.

(Solar Storms Can Drain Electrical Charge Above Earth, NASA)

The Remote Sensing Package, built by CU/LASP, will identify characteristics present throughout the upper atmosphere and ionosphere.

(Mars Mission Spacecraft Enters Orbit around Red Planet, NASA)

The ionosphere is a region of Earth's upper atmosphere located from about 37 miles (60 kilometers) to 621 miles (1,000 kilometers) above Earth’s surface.

(GPS Data Show How Nepal Quake Disturbed Earth’s Upper Atmosphere, NASA)

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft has been orbiting Mars for just over two years, studying the Red Planet's upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind.

(NASA Orbiter Steers Clear of Mars Moon Phobos, NASA)

The metal ions can reveal previously invisible activity in the mysterious electrically charged upper atmosphere (ionosphere) of Mars.

(Mars Has Metal in Its Atmosphere, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

They were inspired by Earth’s own ionosphere, a region of the upper atmosphere where interactions between neutral and charged particles are responsible for many dynamic processes.

(Scientists Uncover Origins of the Sun’s Swirling Spicules, NASA)

Data from observations carried out by NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission, NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), and a radar instrument on the European Space Agency's (ESA's) Mars Express spacecraft have revealed that debris from the comet added a temporary and very strong layer of ions to the ionosphere, the electrically charged layer high above Mars.

(Mars Spacecraft Reveal Comet Flyby Effects on Martian Atmosphere, NASA)

Once there, the icy ring particles vaporize and the water can react chemically with Saturn’s ionosphere.

(Saturn is Losing Its Rings, NASA)

The April 25, 2015, magnitude 7.8 Gorkha earthquake in Nepal created waves of energy that penetrated into Earth's upper atmosphere in the vicinity of Nepal, disturbing the distribution of electrons in the ionosphere.

(GPS Data Show How Nepal Quake Disturbed Earth’s Upper Atmosphere, NASA)