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Geomagnetic control of equatorial plasma bubble activity modeled by the TIEGCM with Kp
Author(s) -
Carter B. A.,
Retterer J. M.,
Yizengaw E.,
Groves K.,
Caton R.,
McNamara L.,
Bridgwood C.,
Francis M.,
Terkildsen M.,
Norman R.,
Zhang K.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2014gl060953
Subject(s) - earth's magnetic field , ionosphere , scintillation , atmospheric sciences , physics , rayleigh–taylor instability , thermosphere , instability , plasma , growth rate , interplanetary scintillation , environmental science , geophysics , mechanics , mathematics , magnetic field , geometry , solar wind , coronal mass ejection , quantum mechanics , detector , optics
Describing the day‐to‐day variability of Equatorial Plasma Bubble (EPB) occurrence remains a significant challenge. In this study we use the Thermosphere‐Ionosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIEGCM), driven by solar ( F 10.7 ) and geomagnetic ( K p ) activity indices, to study daily variations of the linear Rayleigh‐Taylor (R‐T) instability growth rate in relation to the measured scintillation strength at five longitudinally distributed stations. For locations characterized by generally favorable conditions for EPB growth (i.e., within the scintillation season for that location), we find that the TIEGCM is capable of identifying days when EPB development, determined from the calculated R‐T growth rate, is suppressed as a result of geomagnetic activity. Both observed and modeled upward plasma drifts indicate that the prereversal enhancement scales linearly with K p from several hours prior, from which it is concluded that even small K p changes cause significant variations in daily EPB growth.