Estimating daytime vertical ExB drift velocities in the equatorial F‐region using ground‐based magnetometer observations

Anderson, David; Anghel, Adela; Yumoto, Kiyohumi; Ishitsuka, Mutsumi; Kudeki, Erhan

Estimating daytime vertical ExB drift velocities in the equatorial F‐region using ground‐based magnetometer observations

Abstract

The daytime equatorial electrojet is a narrow band of enhanced eastward current flowing in the 100 to 120 km altitude region within ±2° latitude of the dip equator. A unique way of determining the daytime strength of the electrojet is to observe the difference in the magnitudes of the Horizontal (H) component between a magnetometer placed directly on the magnetic equator and one displaced 6 to 9 degrees away. The difference between these measured H values provides a direct measure of the daytime electrojet current, and in turn, the magnitude of the vertical ExB drift velocity in the F region ionosphere. This paper discusses a recent study that has established the quantitative relationship between the vertical ExB drift velocity in the ionospheric F region and the daytime strength of the equatorial electrojet in the South American (west coast) longitude sector.

Date

2002-06-28

Keywords

Electrojet , F region , Ground-based measurement , Ionosphere , Magnetometer , Vertical migration

Citation

Anderson, D., Anghel, A., Yumoto, K., Ishitsuka, M., & Kudeki, E. (2002). Estimating daytime vertical ExB drift velocities in the equatorial F‐region using ground‐based magnetometer observations. Geophysical Research Letters, 29 (12). https://doi.org/10.1029/2001GL014562