The equatorial electrojet

Forbes, J.

The equatorial electrojet

Abstract

The typical quiet day variations of the equatorial electrojet (EEJ) current intensity with time of the day, season, sunspot number, and geomagnetic latitude are presented in terms of the corresponding variations of ΔH which is the deviation of the horizontal component (H) of the geomagnetic field from its steady nighttime level. The observed height structure of the current density in the EEJ as measured in rocket flights is presented, along with the theoretically computed structure. Theoretical model results on the polarization electric fields and east-west currents as generated by the local interactions of height-varying winds in the EEJ show large height gradients and reversals for both currents and electric fields; experimental evidence for the reality of such height structures is also shown. The characteristics of the counter-electrojet events are presented and the possible causative mechanisms are discussed critically. Some typical experimental results are presented on the electric field changes in the EEJ which result from its sensitive response to electrodynamic disturbances in the magnetosphere and the auroral-polar latitude ionosphere during geomagnetic substorms and storms; and their implications are discussed. Possibilities for utilizing the EEJ as a very useful medium for important scientific studies on the larger space domain of ionosphere-magnetosphere system, on plasma waves, and on the earth's conductivity are emphasized.