Bibliography

Low-latitude plasma blobs above Africa: Exploiting GOLD and multi-satellite in situ measurements

Low-latitude plasma blobs are localized density enhancements of electron density that are occasionally observed in the night-time tropical ionosphere. Two-dimensional (2D) imaging of this phenomenon has been rare and frequently restricted to Central/South America, which is densely covered with ground-based airglow imagers and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers. In Africa, on the contrary, no 2D image of a blob has been reported. Here we present two low-latitude blob events above Africa, one in the Northern summer and the other in winter, in the 2-dimensional Far-UltraViolet (FUV) images from the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission. Additionally, multiple satellites (four spacecraft per event) on the Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) encountered the blob events, some within the GOLD images and some outside. The LEO data support the robustness of GOLD observations and bridge time gaps between the consecutive images. Properties of the two blob events above Africa generally support the conclusions in a previous case study for Central/South America. Plasma therein exhibited higher O+ fraction and faster ion flow toward outer L-shells than the ambient. The blobs were conjugate to locally intensified Equatorial Ionization Anomaly crests without conspicuous equatorward-westward propagation. Our results demonstrate the usefulness of GOLD and multiple LEO satellites in monitoring the ionosphere above Africa, which is a fascinating laboratory of low-latitude electrodynamics but still waiting for more observatories to be deployed.

Park, Jaeheung; Min, Kyoung; Eastes, Richard; Chao, Chi; Kim, Hee-Eun; Lee, Junchan; Sohn, Jongdae; Ryu, Kwangsun; Seo, Hoonkyu; Yoo, Ji-Hyeon; Lee, Seunguk; Woo, Changho; Kim, Eo-Jin;

Published by: Advances in Space Research      Published on: may

YEAR: 2022     DOI: 10.1016/j.asr.2022.05.021

COSMIC-2; GOLD; ICON; Low-latitude blobs; NextSat-1; swarm

Coordinated Observations of Rocket Exhaust Depletion: GOLD, Madrigal TEC, and Multiple Low-Earth-Orbit Satellites

A plasma density hole was created in the ionosphere by a rocket launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida near local sunset on 30 August 2020, which is called rocket exhaust depletion (RED). The hole persisted for several hours into the night and was observed in total electron content (TEC) maps, the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) imager, and multiple low-earth-orbit satellites. The RED created a nightglow pit in the GOLD 135.6 nm image. Swarm satellites found that the RED exhibited insignificant changes in electron/ion temperature and field-aligned currents. On the other hand, magnetic field strength was enhanced inside the RED by a few tenths of a nanotesla. Assimilation data products of the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate 2 (COSMIC-2) mission reveal that ionospheric slab thickness increased at the center of the RED, which is supported by combined analyses of the GOLD and TEC data. The RED did not host conspicuous substructures that are stronger and longer-lasting than the ambient plasma did.

Park, Jaeheung; Rajesh, P.; Ivarsen, Magnus; Lin, Charles; Eastes, Richard; Chao, Chi; Coster, Anthea; Clausen, Lasse; Burchill, Johnathan;

Published by: Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics      Published on:

YEAR: 2022     DOI: 10.1029/2021JA029909

GOLD; Madrigal TEC; COSMIC-2; Norsat-1; rocket exhaust depletion; swarm

Implication of Tidal Forcing Effects on the Zonal Variation of Solstice Equatorial Plasma Bubbles

Equatorial plasma bubbles (EPBs) are plasma depletions that can occur in the nighttime ionospheric F region, causing scintillation in satellite navigation and communications signals. Past research has shown that EPB occurrence rates are higher during the equinoxes in most longitude zones. An exception is over the central Pacific and African sectors, where EPB activity has been found to maximize during solstice. Tsunoda et al. (2015) hypothesized that the solstice maxima in these two sectors could be driven by a zonal wavenumber 2 atmospheric tide in the lower thermosphere. In this study, we utilize satellite observations to examine evidence of such a wave-2 feature preconditioning the nighttime ionosphere to favor higher EPB growth rates over these two regions. We find the postsunset total electron content (TEC) observed by FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC (Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate) during boreal summer from 2007 to 2012 exhibits a wave-2 zonal distribution, consistent with elevated vertical plasma gradients favorable for EPB formation. Numerical experiments are also carried out to determine whether such an ionospheric wave-2 can be produced as a result of vertical coupling from atmospheric tides with zonal wavenumber 2 in the local time frame. We find that forcing from these tidal components produced increases in the Rayleigh-Taylor growth rate over both sectors during solar maximum and minimum, as well as wave-2 modulations on vertical ion drift, ion flux convergence, and nighttime TEC. Our results are consistent with the aforementioned hypothesis over both regions with vertical coupling effects from atmospheric tides preconditioning the nighttime ionosphere to favor higher EPB growth rates.

Chang, Loren; Salinas, Cornelius; Chiu, Yi-Chung; , Jones; Rajesh, P.; Chao, Chi-Kuang; Liu, Jann-Yenq; Lin, Charles; Hsiao, Tung-Yuan;

Published by: Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics      Published on:

YEAR: 2021     DOI: 10.1029/2020JA028295

Ionosphere; Atmospheric tides; equatorial plasma bubble; scintillation; vertical coupling; wind dynamo

A Method to Calculate the Ionospheric LBH Dayglow Emissions for Large Field of View

Yong-Chao, ZHANG; Fei, HE; Xiao-Xin, ZHANG; Bo, CHEN;

Published by: Chinese Journal of Geophysics      Published on:

YEAR: 2014     DOI: