High latitude ionospheric structure

Technical Report · Fri Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 1984

OSTI ID:6094217

The Earth's ionosphere is an important element in solar-terrestrial energy transfer processes. As a major terrestrial sink for many solar and magnetospheric events, the ionosphere has characteristic features that are traced to such seemingly remote phenomena as solar flares, radiation belt wave-particle interactions and magnetospheric substorms. In considering the multiple of solar-terrestrial plasma interactions, it is important to recognize that the high-latitude ionosphere is not altogether a simple receptor of various energy deposition processes. The high-altitude ionosphere plays an active feedback role by controlling the conductivity at the base of far-reaching magnetic field lines and by providing a plasma source for the magnetosphere. Indeed, the role of the ionosphere during magnetospheric substorms is emerging as a topic for meaningful study in the overall picture of magnetospheric-ionospheric coupling.

• Research Organization: Maryland Univ., College Park (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6094217
• Report Number(s): N-84-34344
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640201* -- Atmospheric Physics-- Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
CHARGED-PARTICLE PRECIPITATION
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
ELECTRIC FIELDS
ELECTRON PRECIPITATION
ENERGY TRANSFER
IONOSPHERE
MAGNETIC STORMS
PLANETARY IONOSPHERES
POLAR REGIONS
TRANSPORT THEORY