Generation and detection of whistler wave induced space plasma turbulence at Gakona, Alaska

Abstract

We report on high-frequency wave injection experiments using the beat wave technique to study the generation of very-low-frequency (VLF) whistler waves in the ionosphere above Gakona, Alaska. This work is aimed at investigating whistler wave interactions with ionospheric plasmas and radiation belts. The beat wave technique involves injecting two X-mode waves at a difference frequency in the VLF range using the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) heating facility. A sequence of beat wave-generated whistler waves at 2, 6.5, 7.5, 8.5, 9.5, 11.5, 15.5, 22.5, 28.5 and 40.5 kHz were detected in our 2011 experiments. We present Modular Ultra-high-frequency Ionospheric Radar (MUIR) (446 MHz) measurements of ion lines as the primary diagnosis of ionospheric plasma effects caused by beat wave-generated whistler waves. A magnetometer and digisonde were used to monitor the background ionospheric plasma conditions throughout the experiments. Our theoretical and data analyses show that VLF whistler waves can effectively interact with ionospheric plasmas via two different four-wave interaction processes leading to energization of electrons and ions. These preliminary results support our Arecibo experiments to study NAU-launched 40.75 kHz whistler wave interactions with space plasmas.