Abstract
Two‐dimensional numerical simulations of intermediate wavelength (100–1000 m) E × B gradient drift instability in local unstable regions of large F region ionospheric plasma clouds have been performed, using an initial one‐dimensional cloud geometry, for plasma cloud density gradient scale lengths L=3, 6, 10 km. For conditions typical of 200‐km barium releases we find that linearly unstable modes saturate by nonlinear generation of linearly damped modes along the y direction (parallel to E × B drift). In the nonlinear regime, power laws are observed in the one‐dimensional parallel P(ky) ∝ ky−n and perpendicular P(kx) ∝ kx−n power spectra with n ≃2–3. These results are compared with in situ experimental measurements and theoretical predictions.
Published Version
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