Title
The zonal motion of equatorial plasma bubbles relative to the background ionosphere
Date Issued
01 July 2014
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Publisher(s)
Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Abstract
The zonal motions of plasmas inside equatorial plasma bubbles are different from those in the background ionosphere. The difference was explained in terms of the tilt of bubbles by recent studies, but observational evidence of this hypothesis has not yet been provided. We examine this hypothesis and, at the same time, look for an alternative explanation on the basis of the coincident satellite and radar observations over Jicamarca (11.95°S, 76.87°W) in Peru. In the observations at premidnight by the first Republic of China satellite (altitude: 600 km, inclination: 35°), plasmas inside bubbles drift westward relative to ambient plasmas. The same phenomenon is identified by radar observations. However, the relative westward plasma motions inside bubbles occur regardless of the tilt of bubbles, and therefore, the tilt is not the primary cause of the deviation of the plasma motions inside bubbles. The zonal plasma motions in the topside are characterized by systematic eastward drifts, whereas the zonal motions of plasmas in the bottomside backscatter layer show a mixture of eastward and westward drifts. The zonal plasma motions inside backscatter plumes resemble those in the bottomside backscatter layer. These observations indicate that plasmas inside bubbles maintain the properties of the zonal plasma motions in the bottomside where the bubbles originate. With this assumption, the deviation of the zonal motions of plasmas inside bubbles from those of ambient plasmas is understood in terms of the difference of the zonal plasma flows in the bottomside and topside. ©2014. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.
Start page
5943
End page
5950
Volume
119
Issue
7
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Meteorología y ciencias atmosféricas
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-84906317234
PubMed ID
Source
Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus