|
|
 |
|
|
Ann. Geophys., 26, 1897-1904, 2008
www.ann-geophys.net/26/1897/2008/
© European Geosciences Union 2008
D region HF radar echoes associated with energetic particle precipitation and pulsating aurora
S. E. Milan1, K. Hosokawa2, M. Lester1, N. Sato3, H. Yamagishi3, and F. Honary4
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK
2Department of Information and Communication Engineering, University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo, Japan
3National Institute of Polar Research, Tokyo, Japan
4Department of Communications Systems, University of Lancaster, Lancaster LA1 4WA, UK
Abstract. Milan et al. (2001) identified a class of narrow,
slow-moving HF radar backscatter echoes which originate between altitudes of
80 and 100 km, the ionospheric D- and lower E-regions. These echoes appeared
to be associated with the occurrence of pulsating aurora, which are known to
be created by energetic electrons capable of penetrating to D region
altitudes. In this study we show that these echoes are observed in tandem
with enhancements in cosmic noise absorption (auroral absorption),
additional evidence that energetic (>30 keV) particle precipitation is
responsible for generating the irregularities from which a radar can
scatter. In addition, we show that the D region backscatter echoes occur
predominantly in the post-midnight sector during substorm recovery phase, in
common with auroral absorption events and pulsating aurora.
Full Article in PDF (837 KB) |
|
|
