Signatures of 2-day wave in the E-region electric fields and their relationship to winds and ionospheric currents

Abstract

We analyze the effects of the 2-day wave activity in the EEJ using one coherent scatter radar and eight magnetometer stations located close to the dip equator. The wavelet analysis of the magnetometer data reveals a 2-day signature in the semidiurnal geomagnetic tide. The E-region zonal background ionospheric electric field, derived from coherent radar measurements, shows 2-day oscillations in agreement with such oscillations in the magnetometers data. An anticorrelation between the amplitude of the tidal periodicites (diurnal and semidiurnal) and that of the 2-day signature is also shown in the electric fields. The results are compared with simultaneous observations of 2-day planetary wave in meridional winds and ionosonde data. Further, our results are discussed based on the analysis of the magnetic activity. © Author(s) 2009.