info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Possible ionospheric preconditioning by shear flow leading to equatorial spread F
Fecha
2005-10-14Registro en:
index-oti2018
Annales Geophysicae
Autor
Hysell, D. L.
Kudeki, E.
Chau Chong Shing, Jorge Luis
Institución
Resumen
Vertical shear in the zonal plasma drift speed is apparent in incoherent and coherent scatter radar observations of the bottomside F region ionosphere made at Jicamarca from about 1600–2200 LT. The relative importance of the factors controlling the shear, which include competition between the E and F region dynamos as well as vertical currents driven in the E and F regions at the dip equator, is presently unknown. Bottom-type scattering layers arise in strata where the neutral and plasma drifts differ widely, and periodic structuring of irregularities within the layers is telltale of intermediate-scale waves in the bottomside. These precursor waves appear to be able to seed ionospheric interchange instabilities and initiate full-blown equatorial spread F. The seed or precursor waves may be generated by a collisional shear instability. However, assessing the viability of shear instability requires measurements of the same parameters needed to understand shear flow quantitatively - thermospheric neutral wind and off-equatorial conductivity profiles.