Competition between winds and electric fields in the formation of blanketing sporadic E layers at equatorial regions

Autor(es)

Araujo Resende, Laysa Cristina ; Batista, Inez Staciarini ; Denardini, Clezio Marcos ; Carrasco, Alexander Jose ; Andrioli, Vania de Fatima ; Moro, Juliano ; Batista, Paulo Prado ; Chen, Sony Su

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: EARTH PLANETS AND SPACE; v. 68, p. 14-pg., 2016-12-01.

Resumo

In the present work, we analyze the competition between tidal winds and electric fields in the formation of blanketing sporadic E layers (Esb) over Sao Luis, Brazil (2 degrees 31'S, 44 degrees 16'W), a quasi-equatorial station. To investigate this competition, we have used an ionospheric E region model (MIRE) that is able to model the Esb layers taking into account the E region winds and electric fields. The model calculates the densities for the main molecular and metallic ions by solving the continuity and momentum equations for each of the species. Thus, the main purpose of this analysis is to verify the electric fields role in the occurrence or disruption of Esb layers through simulations. The first results of the simulations show that the Esb layer is usually present when only the tidal winds were considered. In addition, when the zonal component of the electric field is introduced in the simulation, the Esb layers do not show significant changes. However, the simulations show the disruption of the Esb layers when the vertical electric field is included. In this study, we present two specific cases in which Esb layers appear during some hours over Sao Luis. We can see that these layers appear when the vertical electric field was weak, which means that the tidal components were more effective during these hours. Therefore, the vertical component of the electric field is the main agent responsible for the Esb layer disruption. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 14/11198-9 - Análise do Efeito de Campos Elétricos Perturbados nas Camadas Es em Regiões Equatoriais e de Baixas Latitudes
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• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
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