Lithium Release Experiment in the Thermosphere (Invited)

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[2427] Ionosphere / Ionosphere/Atmosphere Interactions

Scientific paper

Although the ionization rate is less than 1% in the low latitude thermosphere, the dynamics of the neutral atmosphere is strongly controlled by the plasma. The coupling between the neutral atmosphere and the plasma has been investigated by satellites such as DE-2 and CHAMP. The observations show similar local time variation for the plasma drift velocity and neutral wind. The zonal neutral wind flows strongly at the Earth’s magnetic dip equator around 20 magnetic local time in the thermosphere instead of at the geographic equator. On the other hand, the fast zonal plasma drift occurs in the low latitude F-region of the evening ionosphere, and its velocity decreases at the magnetic dip equator. Therefore, the fast plasma drift velocity structure forms an arch in the frame of latitude and altitude in the evening. The fast zonal neutral wind occurs inside this arch. Since the fast zonal plasma drift is strongly associated with the equatorial ionization anomaly, we suggest that the ionosphere-thermosphere coupling associated with the F-region dynamo is important in the low latitude F-region ionosphere/thermosphere. The fast neutral wind occurring at the magnetic dip equator in the evening of F region may lead to atmospheric super-rotation in the low latitude thermosphere. To investigate the neutral atmosphere-plasma coupling process in the low latitude F-region, JAXA/ISAS launched successfully sounding rocket from Kagoshima Space Center (KSC) in evening of September 2, 2007. The rocket experiment is called WINDs (Wind measurement for Ionized and Neutral atmospheric Dynamics Study). Lithium release canisters as well as instruments for plasma drift velocity, plasma density and temperature and its fluctuations, and electric and magnetic fields were installed in the rocket. The Lithium gas was released at altitudes between 150km and 300km, and the lithium scattered sunlight by resonance scattering with wavelength of 670 nm. The neutral winds in the thermosphere were estimated from the movements of Lithium clouds, which were observed by CCD imagers on ground. From the diffusion of lithium clouds, we estimated neutral density and temperature in the thermosphere. JAXA/ISAS will launch again sounding rocket from KSC in summer of 2010. From those experiments, we will acquire an atomic gas release technology to measure the daytime thermosphere.

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