Singular plasma disturbances in the low‐latitude F region

Abstract

We describe here a new phenomenon characterized by unusual patterns of ion drifts inside ion density depletion regions observed by the AE‐E satellite in the low‐latitude F region. In about 30 depletions, vertical ion drift relative to the background was upward on the western sides, downward on the eastern sides, and zero near the middle where the density depletion was greatest. These drift characteristics are distinct from those observed in plasma bubble depletions. The structures reported here were observed on circular orbits below 300 km altitude and had density depletions of up to 2 orders of magnitude or more below the ambient ion density. The upward and downward drift excursions were up to 200 m/s relative to the background. Almost all these structures were observed over oceans or near coasts and largely between ±10° and ±30° dip latitude. The structures were observed mostly as isolated, single depletion regions with the majority of them about 250 km wide in the east–west direction. They occurred during quiet magnetic conditions with near‐equal occurrence frequencies in the premidnight and postmidnight periods. The characteristic density and drift signatures indicate westward propagating disturbances in which the bottomside F layer is first lifted and then returned back to its original position, leaving the ionosphere undisturbed after the disturbance passes by. The estimated speed of these disturbances is of the order of 200 m/s. These unique solitary plasma disturbances, which we designate as singular plasma disturbances, are associated with a propagating source of E×B drift, not driven by neutral perturbations at the altitude of observation.