On auroral dynamics observed by HF radar: 1. Equatorward edge of the afternoon-evening diffuse luminosity belt

Observations and modelling are presented which illustrate the ability of the Finland CUTLASS HF radar to monitor the afternoon-evening equatorward auroral boundary during weak geomagnetic activity. The subsequent substorm growth phase development was also observed in the late evening sector as a natural continuation of the preceding auroral oval dynamics. Over an 8 h period the CUTLASS Finland radar observed a narrow (in range) and persistent region of auroral F- and (later) E-layer echoes which gradually moved equatorward, consistent with the auroral oval diurnal rotation. This echo region corresponds to the subvisual equatorward edge of the diffuse luminosity belt (SEEL) and the ionospheric footprint of the inner boundary of the electron plasma sheet. The capability of the Finland CUTLASS radar to monitor the E-layer SEEL-echoes is a consequence of the nearly zero E-layer rectilinear aspect angles in a region 5/10° poleward of the radar site. The F-layer echoes are probably the boundary blob echoes. The UHF EISCAT radar was in operation and observed a similar subvisual auroral arc and an F-layer electron density enhancement when it appeared in its antenna beam.     

Probing discrete auroral arcs by ionospheric tomography

Optical observations of 557.7 nm and 630.0 nm emissions from discrete auroral arcs in the post-noon sector have been related to localised field-aligned enhancements in the spatial distribution of E- and F-layer electron density respectively seen in images reconstructed by ionospheric tomography. Results from two case studies are presented in which meridian scanning photometer and all-sky camera observations on Svalbard have been compared to electron-density structures found by tomographic inversion of measurements made by reception of radio signals at a chain of four stations at high latitude. The F-layer features are long-lived and show exact correspondence to the red-line emissions. Transient arcs in green-line intensity result in E-region structures that are resolved in one case, but not in another where the dynamic auroral forms are separated by less than one degree of latitude. The signature of an inverted-V precipitation event is clearly evident in one example.     

Post-noon two-minute period pulsating aurora and their relationship to the dayside convection pattern

Poleward-moving auroral forms, as observed by meridian-scanning photometers, in the vicinity of the cusp region are generally assumed to be the optical signature of flux transfer events. Another class of quasi-continuous, short period (1–2 min) wave-like auroral emission has been identified, closely co-located with the convection reversal boundary in the post-noon sector, which is similar in appearance to such cusp aurora. It is suggested that these short period wave-like auroral emissions, the optical signature of boundary plasma sheet precipitation in the region 1 field-aligned current system, are associated with ULF magnetohydrodynamic wave activity, which is observed simultaneously by ground magnetometer stations. This association with ULF wave activity is strengthened by the observation of several harmonic frequencies in the pulsation spectrum, each an overtone of the fundamental standing wave resonance frequency.     

On the possible role of cusp/cleft precipitation in the formation of polar-cap patches

The work describes experimental observations of enhancements in the electron density of the ionospheric F-region created by cusp/cleft particle precipitation at the dayside entry to the polar-cap convection flow. Measurements by meridian scanning photometer and all-sky camera of optical red-line emissions from aurora are used to identify latitudinally narrow bands of soft-particle precipitation responsible for structured enhancements in electron density determined from images obtained by radio tomography. Two examples are discussed in which the electron density features with size scales and magnitudes commensurate with those of patches are shown to be formed by precipitation at the entry region to the anti-sunward flow. In one case the spectrum of the incoming particles results in ionisation being created, for the most part below 250 km, so that the patch will persist only for minutes after convecting away from the auroral source region. However in a second example, at a time when the plasma density of the solar wind was particularly high, a substantial part of the particle-induced enhancement formed above 250 km. It is suggested that, with the reduced recombination loss in the upper F-region, this structure will retain form as a patch during passage in the anti-sunward flow across the polar cap.     

磁正午附近极光强度与沉降粒子能量关系的参数模型

极光是日地能量耦合过程中粒子沉降到极区电离层的最直观表现,对于理解地球空间环境及预测空间天气具有重要作用.本文利用2003-2009年的北极黄河站的多波段地面极光观测,结合DMSP卫星粒子沉降探测,对磁正午附近的极光强度与沉降粒子沉降能量之间的关系进行了定量研究.统计结果表明,在10-13磁地方时(MLT)630.0 nm的极光发光占主导,以低能粒子沉降为主;而在13-14MLT,630.0 nm/427.8 nm极光强度比值降低,沉降粒子能量较高.另外,利用极光强度与沉降电子的能通量以及极光强度比值与平均能量之间的函数关系,初步建立了北极黄河站磁正午附近极光强度与沉降粒子能量关系的反演参数模型,为将来空间天气的监测服务.     

The size of the auroral belt during magnetic storms

Using the auroral boundary index derived from DMSP electron precipitation data and the Dst index, changes in the size of the auroral belt during magnetic storms are studied. It is found that the equatorward boundary of the belt at midnight expands equatorward, reaching its lowest latitude about one hour before Dst peaks. This time lag depends very little on storm intensity. It is also shown that during magnetic storms, the energy of the ring current quantified with Dst increases in proportion to L_e^–3, where L_e is the L-value corresponding to the equatorward boundary of the auroral belt designated by the auroral boundary index. This means that the ring current energy is proportional to the ion energy obtained from the earthward shift of the plasma sheet under the conservation of the first adiabatic invariant. The ring current energy is also pronortional to E_mag, the total magnetic field energy contained in the spherical shell bounded by L_e and L_eq, where L_eq corresponds to the quiet-time location of the auroral precipitation boundary. The ratio of the ring current energy E_R to the dipole energy E_mag is typically 10%. The ring current leads to magnetosphere inflation as a result of an increase in the equivalent dipole moment.     

PFISR observations of strong azimuthal flow bursts in the ionosphere and their relation to nightside aurora

Flow bursts within the ionosphere are the ionospheric signatures of flow bursts in the plasma sheet and have been associated with poleward boundary intensifications (PBIs). Some PBIs extend equatorward from the polar cap boundary, where they can be roughly divided into north–south-aligned and east–west-aligned structures. In this paper, we present two flow burst events observed by the new Poker Flat Advanced Modular Incoherent Scatter Radar (PFISR) in the pre-midnight auroral zone on 28 April 2007, one towards the west and the other towards the east. In both cases, enhanced flows lasted for about 8–10 min with peak velocities exceeding 1500 m/s. The concurrently measured electron density showed that the flow bursts occurred in low conductivity regions. However, near the poleward (equatorward) edge of the westward (eastward) flow burst, strong electron density enhancements were observed in the E region, indicating the presence of discrete auroral arcs. Auroral images from the Polar spacecraft were available at the time of the eastward flow burst and they indicate that this burst was associated with an east–west-aligned auroral structure that connected at later MLT to a north–south structure. In addition, simultaneous precipitating particle energy spectrum measured by the the Defense Meteorological Satellites Program (DMSP) F13 satellite reveals that this auroral structure resulted from mono-energetic electron precipitation associated with a significant field-aligned potential drop. These observations show direct evidence of the relationship between flow bursts, field-aligned currents and auroral intensifications, and suggest that eastward/westward flow bursts are associated with east–west-oriented PBI structures that have extended well within the plasma sheet. This is in contrast to the equatorward-directed flow that has been previously inferred for PBIs near the polar cap boundary and for north–south auroral structures. This paper illustrates the use of the PFISR radar for studying the magnetosphere–ionosphere coupling of flow bursts.     

低太阳活动期间极区ELDI的EISCAT/ESR雷达观测

本文利用2009—2011年EISCAT/ESR雷达的场向观测数据,统计研究了低太阳活动期间极区E层占优电离层(ELDI)事件的发生规律及其主要特征.地面雷达观测表明,极区ELDI表现出明显的季节变化特征:在冬季和早春发生率较高.EISCAT雷达(极光椭圆纬度)观测到的ELDI多出现在磁午夜扇区,平均持续30 min;ESR雷达(极尖/极隙区纬度)观测到的ELDI多出现在磁正午附近,平均持续14 min,表现出与之前无线电掩星观测结果不一致的日变化特征.在ELDI事件期间,两处雷达观测到的电离层N_mE/N_mF₂比值和E层厚度都没有表现出显著的空间差异.事例分析证实E层电子增强和F层电子密度耗空都能够独立地导致ELDI,然而,统计分析表明上述两个过程对ELDI的形成都起着不可或缺的作用.     

日侧极光弧的发光强度与沉降电子能谱的相关关系

本文利用中国北极黄河站多波段全天空极光观测数据,选取稳定的日侧极光弧,统计研究了极光强度比I_(557.7)/I_(630.0)与极光发光强度I_(557.7)的相关关系.发现I_(557.7)在午前暖点和午后热点区附近出现极大值,分别为2.2kR和2.9 kR;而I_(630.0)在磁正午出现极大值,为1.5kR.当I_(557.7)从0.1kR增加到10kR时,极光强度比I_(557.7)/I_(630.0)也由0.2增加到9.结合DMSP卫星探测的沉降粒子能谱数据,找到17个DMSP卫星穿越黄河站上空极光弧的事件,共穿越40条极光弧.得到了沉降电子的平均能量正比于极光强度比I_(557.7)/I_(630.0),沉降电子的总能通量正相关于极光强度I_(557.7)的关系式.利用该关系式反演所有极光弧的电子能谱,发现在午前和午后扇区,产生极光弧的沉降电子主要来源于等离子体片边界层;在高纬出现强度较弱的弧,对应等离子体幔区域.在磁正午附近,沉降电子的平均能量较低,极光弧处于低纬一侧,粒子源区主要是低纬边界层.     

Instability of the magnetosphere-ionosphere convection and formation of auroral arcs

In this paper we study an instability of the plasma moving towards the Earth near the inner plasma sheet boundary. We include both the interchange instability of the plasma sheet and the magnetosphere-ionosphere interaction instability caused by an effect of field-aligned currents (connected with electron precipitation) on ionospheric conductivity. The instability leads to the separation of steady-state magnetospheric convection into parallel layers. This instability may be responsible for the appearance of quiet auroral arcs inside region 2 of field-aligned currents flowing out of the ionosphere. This instability allows us to explain also the existence of crossing auroral arcs.     

Auroral glow equatorward from the auroral oval

On the basis of observations for the IGY period (visoplots) it is shown, that during magnetic storms diffuse glow is detected at all latitudes between the lowest latitude of the visually observed auroral glow at the zenith and the auroral oval. The diffuse glow region spatially coincides with the region of soft electron precipitation extending equatorward from the boundary of the oval to the latitude of the plasmopause projections along the magnetic force lines to the ionosphere. Using published materials on the diffuse glow dynamics and SAR arcs at the Yakutsk meridian, as well as simultaneous measurements of the DMSP F9 satellite, we discuss the contribution from low-energy electron precipitation transfered via convection toward Earth from the magnetosphere’s plasma sheet to excitation of 630.0 nm emission in low-intensity (<1.0 kR) SAR arcs.     

ESR and EISCAT observations of the response of the cusp and cleft to IMF orientation changes

We report observations of the cusp/cleft ionosphere made on December 16th 1998 by the EISCAT (European incoherent scatter) VHF radar at Troms and the EISCAT Svalbard radar (ESR). We compare them with observations of the dayside auroral luminosity, as seen by meridian scanning photometers at Ny Ålesund and of HF radar backscatter, as observed by the CUTLASS radar. We study the response to an interval of about one hour when the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), monitored by the WIND and ACE spacecraft, was southward. The cusp/cleft aurora is shown to correspond to a spatially extended region of elevated electron temperatures in the VHF radar data. Initial conditions were characterised by a northward-directed IMF and cusp/cleft aurora poleward of the ESR. A strong southward turning then occurred, causing an equatorward motion of the cusp/cleft aurora. Within the equatorward expanding, southward-IMF cusp/cleft, the ESR observed structured and elevated plasma densities and ion and electron temperatures. Cleft ion fountain upflows were seen in association with elevated ion temperatures and rapid eastward convection, consistent with the magnetic curvature force on newly opened field lines for the observed negative IMF B_y. Subsequently, the ESR beam remained immediately poleward of the main cusp/cleft and a sequence of poleward-moving auroral transients passed over it. After the last of these, the ESR was in the polar cap and the radar observations were characterised by extremely low ionospheric densities and downward field-aligned flows. The IMF then turned northward again and the auroral oval contracted such that the ESR moved back into the cusp/cleft region. For the poleward-retreating, northward-IMF cusp/cleft, the convection flows were slower, upflows were weaker and the electron density and temperature enhancements were less structured. Following the northward turning, the bands of high electron temperature and cusp/cleft aurora bifurcated, consistent with both subsolar and lobe reconnection taking place simultaneously. The present paper describes the large-scale behaviour of the ionosphere during this interval, as observed by a powerful combination of instruments. Two companion papers, by Lockwood et al. (2000) and Thorolfsson et al. (2000), both in this issue, describe the detailed behaviour of the poleward-moving transients observed during the interval of southward B_z, and explain their morphology in the context of previous theoretical work.     

Global aspects of solar wind–ionosphere interactions

Recent observations have quantified the auroral wind O⁺ outflow in response to magnetospheric inputs to the ionosphere, notably Poynting energy flux and precipitating electron density. For moderate to high activity periods, ionospheric O⁺ is observed to become a significant or dominant component of plasma pressure in the inner plasma sheet and ring current regions. Using a global circulation model of magnetospheric fields and its imposed ionospheric boundary conditions, we evaluate the global ionospheric plasma response to local magnetospheric conditions imposed by the simulation and evaluate magnetospheric circulation of solar wind H⁺, polar wind H⁺, and auroral wind O⁺. We launch and track the motions of millions of test particles in the global fields, launched at randomly distributed positions and times. Each particle is launched with a flux weighting and perpendicular and parallel energies randomly selected from defined thermal ranges appropriate to the launch point. One sequence is driven by a two-hour period of southward interplanetary magnetic field for average solar wind intensity. A second is driven by a 2-h period of enhanced solar wind dynamic pressure for average interplanetary field. We find that the simulated ionospheric O⁺ becomes a significant plasma pressure component in the inner plasma sheet and outer ring current region, particularly when the solar wind is intense or its magnetic field is southward directed. We infer that the reported empirical scalings of auroral wind O⁺ outflows are consistent with a substantial pressure contribution to the inner plasma sheet and plasma source surrounding the ring current. This result violates the common assumption that the ionospheric load is entirely confined to the F layer, and shows that the ionosphere is often an important dynamic element throughout the magnetosphere during moderate to large solar wind disturbances.     

Ionospheric response to variable electric fields in small-scale auroral structures

High time and space resolution optical and radar measurements have revealed the influence of electric fields on E-region electron density profiles in small-scale auroral structures. Large electric fields are present adjacent to auroral filaments produced by monoenergetic electron fluxes. The ionisation profiles measured within and beside the auroral filaments show the effects of plasma convection due to electric fields as well as the consequences of the response time to large and dynamic fluxes of energetic electrons. Without high-resolution optical measurements, the interpretation of the radar data is limited.     

Combined ESR and EISCAT observations of the dayside polar cap and auroral oval during the May 15, 1997 storm

The high-latitude ionospheric response to a major magnetic storm on May 15, 1997 is studied and different responses in the polar cap and the auroral oval are highlighted. Depletion of the F₂ region electron density occurred in both the polar cap and the auroral zone, but due to different physical processes. The increased recombination rate of O⁺ ions caused by a strong electric field played a crucial role in the auroral zone. The transport effect, however, especially the strong upward ion flow was also of great importance in the dayside polar cap. During the main phase and the beginning of the recovery phase soft particle precipitation in the polar cap showed a clear relation to the dynamic pressure of the solar wind, with a maximum cross-correlation coefficient of 0.63 at a time lag of 5 min.     

Two observed consequences of penetration electric fields

The influence of penetration electric fields (PEF) on storm-time energetic particles in the inner magnetosphere and on the stability of plasma in the low-latitude ionosphere is widely recognized. We describe two consequences of PEFs, regularly observed during magnetic storms that indicate their persistence throughout the main phases. These are (1) the presence of equatorial plasma bubbles (EPB) across the evening local time sector during main phases and their absence throughout recovery, and (2) detections of low-energy ion precipitation in the dawn sector equatorward of the auroral electron boundary.     

Polar patches observed by ESR and their possible origin in the cusp region

Observations by the EISCAT Svalbard radar in summer have revealed electron density enhancements in the magnetic noon sector under conditions of IMF B_z southward. The features were identified as possible candidates for polar-cap patches drifting anti-Sunward with the plasma flow. Supporting measurements by the EISCAT mainland radar, the CUTLASS radar and DMSP satellites, in a multi-instrument study, suggested that the origin of the structures lay upstream at lower latitudes, with the modulation in density being attributed to variability in soft-particle precipitation in the cusp region. It is proposed that the variations in precipitation may be linked to changes in the location of the reconnection site at the magnetopause, which in turn results in changes in the energy distribution of the precipitating particles.     

First complementary observations by ionospheric tomography, the EISCAT Svalbard radar and the CUTLASS HF radar

Experimental results are presented from ionospheric tomography, the EISCAT Svalbard radar and the CUTLASS HF radar. Tomographic measurements on 10 October 1996, showing a narrow, field-aligned enhancement in electron density in the post-noon sector of the dayside auroral zone, are related to a temporal increase in the plasma concentration observed by the incoherent scatter radar in the region where the HF radar indicated a low velocity sunwards convection. The results demonstrate the complementary nature of these three instruments for polar-cap ionospheric studies.     

Spatial distribution of conductances and currents associated with a north-south auroral form during a multiple-substorm period

Using the method of characteristics to invert ground-based data of the ground magnetic field disturbance and of the ionospheric electric field, we obtain spatial distributions of ionospheric conductances, currents, and field-aligned currents (FACs) associated with a north-south auroral form that drifts westwards over northern Scandinavia around 2200 UT on December 2, 1977. This auroral form is one in a sequence of such north-south structures observed by all-sky cameras, and appears 14 min after the last of several breakups during that extremely disturbed night. Our analysis shows that the ionospheric Hall conductance reaches values above 200 S in the center of the form, and upward flowing FACs of up to 25 μA/m² are concentrated near its westward and equatorward edge. The strong upward flowing FACs are fed by an area of more distributed, but still very strong downward-flowing FACs northeastward of the auroral form. In contrast to the conductances, the electric field is only slightly affected by the passage of the form. We point out similarities and differences of our observations and results to previously reported observations and models of ‘auroral fingers’, ‘north-south aurora’, and ‘auroral streamers’ which are suggested to be ionospheric manifestations of bursty bulk flows in the plasma sheet.     

高纬电离层特性的实例研究

本文利用EISCAT雷达资料讨论磁层-电离层耦合的高纬电离层效应。研究表明,即使在夏季极昼情况下,磁扰期间的磁层过程对高纬电离层形态的影响也远大于太阳紫外辐射的作用。高能粒子沉降使电离层E层的电子密度大大增加;而磁层对流速度变大会使F层内电离复合加强。因而,磁扰时经常出现n_e（E层）>_e（F层）的情况。此现象不仅与宁静时完全相反,而且与中低纬电离层形态变化也有很大差别。