scholarly journals Simultaneous observations at different altitudes of ionospheric backscatter in the eastward electrojet

1998 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Milan ◽  
M. Lester
Keyword(s):  
Spectral Characteristics ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Approximate Determination ◽  
Spectral Signature ◽  
Plasma Convection ◽  
Flow Angle ◽  
F Region ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
E Region ◽  
Acoustic Speed

Abstract. A common feature of evening near-range ionospheric backscatter in the CUTLASS Iceland radar field of view is two parallel, approximately L-shell-aligned regions of westward flow which are attributed to irregularities in the auroral eastward electrojet region of the ionosphere. These backscatter channels are separated by approximately 100–200 km in range. The orientation of the CUTLASS Iceland radar beams and the zonally aligned nature of the flow allows an approximate determination of flow angle to be made without the necessity of bistatic measurements. The two flow channels have different azimuthal variations in flow velocity and spectral width. The nearer of the two regions has two distinct spectral signatures. The eastern beams detect spectra with velocities which saturate at or near the ion-acoustic speed, and have low spectral widths (less than 100 m s–1), while the western beams detect lower velocities and higher spectral widths (above 200 m s–1). The more distant of the two channels has only one spectral signature with velocities above the ion-acoustic speed and high spectral widths. The spectral characteristics of the backscatter are consistent with E-region scatter in the nearer channel and upper-E-region or F-region scatter in the further channel. Temporal variations in the characteristics of both channels support current theories of E-region turbulent heating and previous observations of velocity-dependent backscatter cross-section. In future, observations of this nature will provide a powerful tool for the investigation of simultaneous E- and F-region irregularity generation under similar (nearly co-located or magnetically conjugate) electric field conditions.Key words. Auroral ionosphere · Ionospheric irregularities · Plasma convection

scholarly journals Imaging radar observations of Farley Buneman waves during the JOULE II experiment

2008 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 1837-1850 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. Hysell ◽  
G. Michhue ◽  
M. F. Larsen ◽  
R. Pfaff ◽  
M. Nicolls ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electric Fields ◽  
Spectral Width ◽  
Auroral Zone ◽  
Convection Flow ◽  
Coherent Scatter ◽  
Flow Angle ◽  
Doppler Shifts ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
The Waves ◽  
Acoustic Speed

Abstract. Vector electric fields and associated E×B drifts measured by a sounding rocket in the auroral zone during the NASA JOULE II experiment in January 2007, are compared with coherent scatter spectra measured by a 30 MHz radar imager in a common volume. Radar imaging permits precise collocation of the spectra with the background electric field. The Doppler shifts and spectral widths appear to be governed by the cosine and sine of the convection flow angle, respectively, and also proportional to the presumptive ion acoustic speed. The neutral wind also contributes to the Doppler shifts. These findings are consistent with those from the JOULE I experiment and also with recent numerical simulations of Farley Buneman waves and instabilities carried out by Oppenheim et al. (2008). Simple linear analysis of the waves offers some insights into the spectral moments. A formula relating the spectral width to the flow angle, ion acoustic speed, and other ionospheric parameters is derived.

scholarly journals Simultaneous HF measurements of E- and F-region Doppler velocities at large flow angles

2004 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 1177-1185 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. A. Makarevitch ◽  
F. Honary ◽  
A. V. Koustov
Keyword(s):  
Hf Radar ◽  
Doppler Velocity ◽  
Plasma Convection ◽  
Aspect Angle ◽  
F Region ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
E Region ◽  
The Difference ◽  
New Feature ◽  
Large Flow

Abstract. Data collected by the CUTLASS Finland HF radar are used to illustrate the significant difference between the cosine component of the plasma convection in the F-region and the Doppler velocity of the E-region coherent echoes observed at large flow angles. We show that the E-region velocity is ~5 times smaller in magnitude and rotated by ~30° clockwise with respect to convection in the F-region. Also, measurements at flow angles larger than 90° exhibit a completely new feature: Doppler velocity increase with the expected aspect angle and spatial anticorrelation with the backscatter power. By considering DMSP drift-meter measurements we argue that the difference between F- and E-region velocities cannot be interpreted in terms of the convection change with latitude. The observed features in the velocity of the E-region echoes can be explained by taking into account the ion drift contribution to the irregularity phase velocity as predicted by the linear fluid theory. Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities; plasma convection)

scholarly journals STARE velocity at large flow angles: is it related to the ion acoustic speed?

2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 873-885 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. V. Uspensky ◽  
A. V. Koustov ◽  
S. Nozawa
Keyword(s):  
Electron Flow ◽  
Line Of Sight ◽  
Velocity Data ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
E Region ◽  
Linear Fit ◽  
Radar Velocity ◽  
Large Flow ◽  
Eiscat Measurements ◽  
Acoustic Speed

Abstract. The electron drift and ion-acoustic speed in the E region inferred from EISCAT measurements are compared with concurrent STARE radar velocity data to investigate a recent hypothesis by Bahcivan et al. (2005), that the electrojet irregularity velocity at large flow angles is simply the product of the ion-acoustic speed and the cosine of an angle between the electron flow and the irregularity propagation direction. About 3000 measurements for flow angles of 50°–70° and electron drifts of 400–1500 m/s are considered. It is shown that the correlation coefficient and the slope of the best linear fit line between the predicted STARE velocity (based solely on EISCAT data and the hypothesis of Bahcivan et al. (2005)) and the measured one are both of the order of ~0.4. Velocity predictions are somewhat better if one assumes that the irregularity phase velocity is the line-of-sight component of the E×B drift scaled down by a factor ~0.6 due to off-orthogonality of irregularity propagation (nonzero effective aspect angles of STARE observations).

scholarly journals A comparison of velocity measurements from the CUTLASS Finland radar and the EISCAT UHF system

1999 ◽  
Vol 17 (7) ◽  
pp. 892-902 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Davies ◽  
M. Lester ◽  
S. E. Milan ◽  
T. K. Yeoman
Keyword(s):  
Total Duration ◽  
Field Of View ◽  
Simultaneous Occurrence ◽  
Plasma Convection ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
Plasma Irregularities ◽  
Incoherent Scatter ◽  
F Region ◽  
Initial Comparison ◽  
E Region

Abstract. The CUTLASS Finland radar, which comprises an integral part of the SuperDARN system of HF coherent radars, provides near continuous observations of high-latitude plasma irregularities within a field-of-view which extends over some four million square kilometres. Within the Finland radar field-of-view lie both the EISCAT mainland and EISCAT Svalbard incoherent scatter radar facilities. Since the CUTLASS Finland radar commenced operation, in February 1995, the mainland EISCAT UHF radar has been run in common programme 1 and 2 modes for a total duration exceeding 1000 h. Simultaneous and spatially coincident returns from these two radars over this period provide the basis for a comparison of irregularity drift velocity and F-region ion velocity. Initial comparison is limited to velocities from four intervals of simultaneous radar returns; intervals are selected such that they exhibit a variety of velocity signatures including that characteristic of the convection reversal and a rapidly fluctuating velocity feature. Subsequent comparison is on a statistical basis. The velocities measured by the two systems demonstrate reasonable correspondence over the velocity regime encountered during the simultaneous occurrence of coherent and incoherent scatter; differences between the EISCAT UHF measurements of F-region ion drift and the irregularity drift velocities from the Finland radar are explained in terms of a number of contributing factors including contamination of the latter by E-region echoes, a factor which is investigated further, and the potentially deleterious effect of discrepant volume and time sampling intervals.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma convection)

scholarly journals Multi-frequency observations of E-region HF radar aurora

2003 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 761-777 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Milan ◽  
M. Lester ◽  
N. Sato
Keyword(s):  
Doppler Shift ◽  
Hf Radar ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Wave Number ◽  
Electron Drift ◽  
Doppler Shifts ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
E Region ◽  
Coherent Backscatter ◽  
Acoustic Speed

Abstract. Multi-frequency observations of E-region coherent backscatter from decametre waves reveal that auroral echoes tend to comprise two spectral components superimposed, one at low Doppler shifts, below 250 ms-1, and the other Doppler shifted to near the ion-acoustic speed or above, up to 800 ms-1. The low Doppler shift component occurs at all look directions; Doppler shifts near the ion acoustic speed occur when looking at low flow angles along the direction of the electron drift in the electrojet, and Doppler shifts in excess of the ion acoustic speed occur at intermediate flow angles. The latter population appears most commonly at radar frequencies near 10–12 MHz, with its occurrence decreasing dramatically at higher frequencies. The velocity of the high Doppler shift echoes increases with increasing radar frequency, or irregularity wave number k. The velocity of the low Doppler shift population appears to be suppressed significantly below the line-of-sight component of the electron drift. Initial estimates of the altitude from which scatter occurs suggest that the high Doppler shift echoes originate from higher in the E-region than the low Doppler shift echoes, certainly in the eastward electrojet. We discuss these observations with reference to the theories of de/stabilization of two-stream waves by electron density gradients and electrostatic ion cyclotron waves excited by field-parallel electron drifts.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities)

scholarly journals Assessing the contamination of SuperDARN global convection maps by non-F-region backscatter

2002 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Chisham ◽  
M. Pinnock
Keyword(s):  
Doppler Velocity ◽  
Plasma Convection ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Radio Science ◽  
Ionosphere Plasma ◽  
F Region ◽  
Mesoscale Structure ◽  
Mapping Process ◽  
E Region ◽  
Instruments And Techniques

Abstract. Global convection mapping using line-of-sight Doppler velocity data from the Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) is now an accepted method of imaging high-latitude ionospheric convection. This mapping process requires that the flow measured by the radars is defined solely by the convection electric field. This is generally only true of radar backscatter from the ionospheric F-region. We investigate the extent to which the E-region and ground backscatter in the SuperDARN data set may be misidentified as F-region backscatter, and assess the contamination of global convection maps which results from the addition of this non-F-region backscatter. We present examples which highlight the importance of identifying this contamination, especially with regard to the mesoscale structure in the convection maps.Key words. Ionosphere (plasma convection) – Radio science (radio wave propagation; instruments and techniques)

scholarly journals E-region echo characteristics governed by auroral arc electrodynamics

2003 ◽  
Vol 21 (7) ◽  
pp. 1567-1575 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Milan ◽  
N. Sato ◽  
M. Lester ◽  
Y. Murata ◽  
Y. Shinkai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electric Field ◽  
Electric Fields ◽  
Doppler Shift ◽  
Hf Radar ◽  
Radar Echoes ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
E Region ◽  
Electric Fields And Currents ◽  
Auroral Arcs ◽  
Acoustic Speed

Abstract. Observations of a pair of auroral arc features by two imagers, one ground- and one space-based, allows the associated field-aligned current (FAC) and electric field structure to be inferred. Simultaneous observations of HF radar echoes provide an insight into the irregularity-generating mechanisms. This is especially interesting for the E-region echoes observed, which form the focus of our analysis, and from which several conclusions can be drawn, summarized as follows. Latitudinal variations in echo characteristics are governed by the FAC and electric field background. Particularly sharp boundaries are found at the edges of auroral arcs. Within regions of auroral luminosity, echoes have Doppler shifts below the ion-acoustic speed and are proportional to the electric field, suggesting scatter from gradient drift waves. Regions of downward FAC are associated with mixed high and low Doppler shift echoes. The high Doppler shift component is greatly in excess of the ion-acoustic speed, but seems to be commensurate with the driving electric field. The low Doppler shift component appears to be much depressed below expectations.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; electric fields and currents)

scholarly journals The electron drift velocity, ion acoustic speed and irregularity drifts in high-latitude E-region

2008 ◽  
Vol 26 (11) ◽  
pp. 3395-3409 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. V. Uspensky ◽  
R. J. Pellinen ◽  
P. Janhunen
Keyword(s):  
Drift Velocity ◽  
Equatorial Electrojet ◽  
Electron Drift Velocity ◽  
Doppler Velocity ◽  
Electron Drift ◽  
Velocity Dependence ◽  
Flow Angle ◽  
Aspect Angle ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
Acoustic Speed

Abstract. The purpose of this study is to examine the STARE irregularity drift velocity dependence on the EISCAT line-of-sight (los or l-o-s) electron drift velocity magnitude, VE×Blos, and the flow angle ΘN,F (superscript N and/or F refer to the STARE Norway and Finland radar). In the noon-evening sector the flow angle dependence of Doppler velocities, VirrN,F, inside and outside the Farley-Buneman (FB) instability cone (|VE×Blos|>Cs and |VE×Blos|<Cs, respectively, where Cs is the ion acoustic speed), is found to be similar and much weaker than suggested earlier. In a band of flow angles 45°<ΘN,F<85° it can be reasonably described by |VirrN,F|∝AN,FCscosnΘN,F, where AN,F≈1.2–1.3 are monotonically increasing functions of VE×B and the index n is ~0.2 or even smaller. This study (a) does not support the conclusion by Nielsen and Schlegel (1985), Nielsen et al. (2002, their #[18]) that at flow angles larger than ~60° (or |VirrN,F|≤300 m/s) the STARE Doppler velocities are equal to the component of the electron drift velocity. We found (b) that if the data points are averages over 100 m/s intervals (bins) of l-o-s electron velocities and 10 deg intervals (bins) of flow angles, then the largest STARE Doppler velocities always reside inside the bin with the largest flow angle. In the flow angle bin 80° the STARE Doppler velocity is larger than its driver term, i.e. the EISCAT l-o-s electron drift velocity component, |VirrN,F|>|VE×Blos|. Both features (a and b) as well as the weak flow angle velocity dependence indicate that the l-o-s electron drift velocity cannot be the sole factor which controls the motion of the backscatter ~1-m irregularities at large flow angles. Importantly, the backscatter was collected at aspect angle ~1° and flow angle Θ>60°, where linear fluid and kinetic theories invariably predict negative growth rates. At least qualitatively, all the facts can be reasonably explained by nonlinear wave-wave coupling found and described by Kudeki and Farley (1989), Lu et al. (2008) for the equatorial electrojet and studied in numerical simulation by Otani and Oppenheim (1998, 2006).

scholarly journals A new scenario applying traffic flow analogy to poleward expansion of auroras

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Osuke Saka
Keyword(s):  
Acoustic Wave ◽  
Electric Fields ◽  
Electrostatic Potential ◽  
Ion Acoustic Wave ◽  
F Region ◽  
Electrons And Ions ◽  
Ion Acoustic ◽  
E Region ◽  
Field Lines ◽  
Poleward Expansion

Abstract. An auroral ionosphere is generally incompressive and non-uniform medium with anisotropic conductivities. Compressibility may occur, however, following the onset of field line dipolarization. This behavior can happen when; (1) Westward directing electric fields transmitted from the dipolarization region accumulate both electrons and ions in equatorward latitudes in F region. (2) The mobility difference of electrons and ions in E region produces electrostatic potential in a quasi-neutral condition, positive in higher latitudes and negative in lower latitudes. (3) Density modulation in F region excites ion acoustic wave propagating along the field lines towards the magnetosphere. (4) The ion acoustic wave stops in the ionosphere for about 4 min because of a low phase velocity (~ 1.6 km/s). During this compressive interval, density accumulation in equatorward latitudes expands upstream to form a poleward expansion of auroras analogous to upstream propagation of a shock in traffic flow on crowded roads. Electrostatic potential produced in the E region generates field-aligned currents and closing Pedersen currents to retain electrostatic potential in a quasi-neutral ionosphere. The ion acoustic wave produces upward electric fields along the field lines in accordance with the Boltzmann relation which contributed to the ion upflow at topside ionosphere.

scholarly journals Spectral characteristics of spring arctic mesosphere dynamics

1998 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. 1607-1618 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. M. Hall ◽  
A. H. Manson ◽  
C. E. Meek
Keyword(s):  
Energy Dissipation ◽  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Spectral Characteristics ◽  
Turbulent Energy ◽  
Energy Dissipation Rate ◽  
Spectral Signature ◽  
Upper Limits ◽  
Waves And Tides ◽  
Signal Fading ◽  
Mf Radar

Abstract. The spring of 1997 has represented a stable period of operation for the joint University of Tromsø / University of Saskatchewan MF radar, being between refurbishment and upgrades. We examine the horizontal winds from the February to June inclusive and also include estimates of energy dissipation rates derived from signal fading times and presented as upper limits on the turbulent energy dissipation rate, ε. Here we address the periodicity in the dynamics of the upper mesosphere for time scales from hours to one month. Thus, we are able to examine the changes in the spectral signature of the mesospheric dynamics during the transition from winter to summer states.Key words. Meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (middle atmosphere dynamics; turbulence; waves and tides).

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document