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In this paper we discuss counterstreaming electrons, electric field turbulence, HF radar spectral width enhancements, and field-aligned currents in the southward IMF cusp region. Electric field and particle observations from the FAST spacecraft are compared with CUTLASS Finland spectral width enhancements and ground-based optical data from Svalbard during a meridional crossing of the cusp. The observed 630nm rayed arc (Type-1 cusp aurora) is associated with stepped cusp ion signatures. Simultaneous counterstreaming low-energy electrons on open magnetic field lines lead us to propose that such electrons may be an important source for rayed red arcs through pitch angle scattering in collisions with the upper atmosphere. The observed particle precipitation and electric field turbulence are found to be nearly collocated with the equatorward edge of the optical cusp, in a region where CUTLASS Finland also observed enhanced spectral width. The electric field turbulence is observed to extend far poleward of the optical cusp. The broad-band electric field turbulence corresponds to spatial scale lengths down to 5m. Therefore, we suggest that electric field irregularities are directly responsible for the formation of HF radar backscatter targets and may also explain the observed wide spectra. FAST also encountered two narrow highly structured field-aligned current pairs flowing near the edges of cusp ion steps. Key words. Ionosphere (electric fields and currents). Magnetosphere physics (magnetopause, cusp, and boundary layers; auroral phenomena)

On 12 January 2000, during a northward IMF period, two successive conjunctions occur between the CUTLASS SuperDARN radar pair and the two satellites Ørsted and FAST. This situation is used to describe and model the electrodynamic of a nightside meso-scale arc associated with a convection shear. Three field-aligned current sheets, one upward and two downward on both sides, are observed. Based on the measurements of the parallel currents and either the conductance or the electric field profile, a model of the ionospheric current closure is developed along each satellite orbit. This model is one-dimensional, in a first attempt and a two-dimensional model is tested for the Ørsted case. These models allow one to quantify the balance between electric field gradients and ionospheric conductance gradients in the closure of the field-aligned currents. These radar and satellite data are also combined with images from Polar-UVI, allowing for a description of the time evolution of the arc between the two satellite passes. The arc is very dynamic, in spite of quiet solar wind conditions. Periodic enhancements of the convection and of electron precipitation associated with the arc are observed, probably associated with quasi-periodic injections of particles due to reconnection in the magnetotail. Also, a northward shift and a reorganisation of the precipitation pattern are observed, together with a southward shift of the convection shear. Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; electric fields and currents; particle precipitation) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions)

Magnetic merging on the dayside magnetopause often occurs at high latitudes. Polar measured fluxes of accelerated ions and wave Poynting vectors while skimming the subsolar magnetopause. The measurements indicate that their source was located to the north of the spacecraft, well removed from expected component merging sites. This represents the first use of wave Poynting flux as a merging discriminator at the magnetopause. We argue that wave Poynting vectors, like accelerated particle fluxes and the Walén tests, are necessary, but not sufficient, conditions for identifying merging events. The Polar data are complemented with nearly simultaneous measurements from Cluster in the northern cusp, with correlated observations from the Super-DARN radar, to show that the locations and rates of merging vary. Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations are used to place the measurements into a global context. The MHD simulations confirm the existence of a high-latitude merging site and suggest that Polar and SuperDARN observed effects are attributable to both exhaust regions of a temporally varying X-line. A survey of 13 merging events places the location at high latitudes whenever the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) clock angle is less than ~150°. While inferred high-latitude merging sites favor the antiparallel merging hypothesis, our data alone cannot exclude the possible existence of a guide field. Merging can even move away from equatorial latitudes when the IMF has a strong southward component. MHD simulations suggest that this happens when the dipole ilt angle increases or when IMF BX increases the effective dipole tilt.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; magnetospheric configuration and dynamics; solar wind-magnetosphere interactions)

The SuperDARN chain of oblique HF radars has provided an opportunity to generate a unique climatology of horizontal winds near the mesopause at a number of high latitude locations, via the Doppler shifted echoes from sources of ionisation in the D-region. Ablating meteor trails form the bulk of these targets, but other phenomena also contribute to the observations. Due to the poor vertical resolution of the radars, care must be taken to reduce possible biases from sporadic-E layers and Polar Mesospheric Summer echoes that can affect the effective altitude of the geophysical parameters being observed. Second, there is strong theoretical and observational evidence to suggest that the radars are picking up echoes from the backward looking direction that will tend to reduce the measured wind strengths. The effect is strongly frequency dependent, resulting in a 20% reduction at 12 MHz and a 50% reduction at 10 MHz. A comparison of the climatologies observed by the Super-DARN Finland radar between September 1999 and September 2000 and that obtained from the adjacent VHF meteor radar located at Kiruna is also presented. The agreement between the two instruments was very good. Extending the analysis to the SuperDARN Iceland East radar indicated that the principles outlined above could be applied successfully to the rest of the SuperDARN network.Key words. Ionosphere (ionosphere-atmosphere interactions; instruments and techniques) – Meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (waves and tides)

We analyse a conjunction event of the Cluster II spacecraft with the MIRACLE ground-based instrument net-work in northern Fennoscandia on 6 February 2001, between 23:00 and 00:00 UT. Shortly after the spacecraft were located at perigee, the Cluster II satellites’ magnetic footpoints move northwards over Scandinavia and Svalbard, almost perfectly aligned with the central chain of the IMAGE magnetometer network, and cross a morning sector ionospheric shear zone during this passage. In this study we focus on the mesoscale structure of the ionosphere. Ionospheric conductances, true horizontal currents, and field-aligned currents (FAC) are calculated from the ground-based measurements of the IMAGE magnetometers and the STARE coherent scatter radar, using the 1-D method of characteristics. An excellent agreement between these results and the FAC observed by Cluster II is reached after averaging the Cluster measurements to mesoscales, as well as between the location of the convection reversal boundary (CRB), as observed by STARE and by the Cluster II EFW instrument. A sheet of downward FAC is observed in the vicinity of the CRB, which is mainly caused by the positive divergence of the electric field there. This FAC sheet is detached by 0.5°–2° of latitude from a more equatorward downward FAC sheet at the poleward flank of the westward electrojet. This latter FAC sheet, as well as the upward FAC at the equatorward flank of the jet, are mainly caused by meridional gradients in the ionospheric conductances, which reach up to 25 S in the electrojet region, but only ~ 5 S poleward of it, with a minimum at the CRB. Particle measurements show that the major part of the downward FAC is carried by upward flowing electrons, and only a small part by downward flowing ions. The open-closed field line boundary is found to be located 3°–4° poleward of the CRB, implying significant errors if the latter is used as a proxy of the former.Key words. Ionosphere (electric fields and currents) – Magnetosphere physics (current systems; plasma convection)

At 10:00 UT on 14 February 2001, the quartet of ESA Cluster spacecraft were approaching the Northern Hemisphere high-latitude magnetopause in the post-noon sector on an outbound trajectory. At this time, the interplanetary magnetic field incident upon the dayside magnetopause was oriented southward and duskward (BZ negative, BY positive), having turned from a northward orientation just over 1 hour earlier. As they neared the magnetopause the magnetic field, electron, and ion sensors on board the Cluster spacecraft observed characteristic field and particle signatures of magnetospheric flux transfer events (FTEs). Following the traversal of a boundary layer and the magnetopause, the spacecraft went on to observe further signatures of FTEs in the magnetosheath. During this interval of ongoing pulsed reconnection at the high-latitude post-noon magnetopause, the footprints of the Cluster spacecraft were located in the fields-of-view of the SuperDARN Finland and Syowa East radars located in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, respectively. This study extends upon the initial survey of Wild et al. (2001) by comparing for the first time in situ magnetic field and plasma signatures of FTEs (here observed by the Cluster 1 spacecraft) with the simultaneous flow modulations in the conjugate ionospheres in the two hemispheres. During the period under scrutiny, the flow disturbances in the conjugate ionospheres are manifest as classic "pulsed ionospheric flows" (PIFs) and "poleward moving radar auroral forms" (PMRAFs). We demonstrate that the ionospheric flows excited in response to FTEs at the magnetopause are not those expected for a spatially limited reconnection region, somewhere in the vicinity of the Cluster 1 spacecraft. By examining the large- and small-scale flows in the high-latitude ionosphere, and the inter-hemispheric correspondence exhibited during this interval, we conclude that the reconnection processes that result in the generation of PIFs/PMRAFs must extend over many (at least 4) hours of magnetic local time on the pre- and post-noon magnetopause.Key words. Ionosphere (plasma convection) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions; magnetospheric configuration and dynamics)

Previous studies have shown that dayside equatorward edge of coherent HF radar backscatter having broad Doppler spectral width is coincident with the equatorward edge of the cusp particle precipitation. This enables the boundary between broad and narrow spectral width backscatters (spectral width boundary) in the dayside magnetic local time sector to be used as a proxy for the open/closed field line boundary. The present case study employs magnetically conjugate SuperDARN coherent HF radars to make an inter-hemispheric comparison of the location and variation of the spectral width boundaries. Agreement between the magnetic latitudes of the boundaries in both hemispheres is remarkable. Correlation coefficients between the latitudes of the boundaries are larger than 0.70. Temporal variation of the spectral width boundary follows the same equatorward trend in both hemispheres. This is consistent with the accumulation of open flux in the polar cap by dayside low-latitude magnetopause reconnection, expected when IMF Bz is negative. Boundaries in both hemispheres also exhibit short-lived poleward motions superposed on the general equator-ward trend, which follows the onset of substorm expansion phase and a temporary northward excursion of IMF Bz during substorm recovery phase. There is an interhemispheric difference in response time to the substorm occurrence between two hemispheres. The spectral width boundary in the Southern Hemisphere starts to move poleward 10 min earlier than that in the Northern Hemisphere. We discuss this difference in terms of interhemispheric asymmetry of the substorm breakup region in the longitudinal direction associated with the effect of IMF By.Key words. Ionosphere (ionosphere-magnetosphere interactions; plasma convection) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp, boundary layers)

Observations of a pair of auroral arc features by two imagers, one ground- and one space-based, allows the associated field-aligned current (FAC) and electric field structure to be inferred. Simultaneous observations of HF radar echoes provide an insight into the irregularity-generating mechanisms. This is especially interesting for the E-region echoes observed, which form the focus of our analysis, and from which several conclusions can be drawn, summarized as follows. Latitudinal variations in echo characteristics are governed by the FAC and electric field background. Particularly sharp boundaries are found at the edges of auroral arcs. Within regions of auroral luminosity, echoes have Doppler shifts below the ion-acoustic speed and are proportional to the electric field, suggesting scatter from gradient drift waves. Regions of downward FAC are associated with mixed high and low Doppler shift echoes. The high Doppler shift component is greatly in excess of the ion-acoustic speed, but seems to be commensurate with the driving electric field. The low Doppler shift component appears to be much depressed below expectations.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; electric fields and currents)

This study employs observations from several sources to determine the location of the polar cap boundary, or open/closed field line boundary, at all local times, allowing the amount of open flux in the magnetosphere to be quantified. These data sources include global auroral images from the Ultraviolet Imager (UVI) instrument on board the Polar spacecraft, SuperDARN HF radar measurements of the convection flow, and low altitude particle measurements from Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellites, and the Fast Auroral SnapshoT (FAST) spacecraft. Changes in the open flux content of the magnetosphere are related to the rate of magnetic reconnection occurring at the magnetopause and in the magnetotail, allowing us to estimate the day- and nightside reconnection voltages during two substorm cycles. Specifically, increases in the polar cap area are found to be consistent with open flux being created when the IMF is oriented southwards and low-latitude magnetopause reconnection is ongoing, and decreases in area correspond to open flux being destroyed at substorm breakup. The polar cap area can continue to decrease for 100 min following the onset of substorm breakup, continuing even after substorm-associated auroral features have died away. An estimate of the dayside reconnection voltage, determined from plasma drift measurements in the ionosphere, indicates that reconnection can take place at all local times along the dayside portion of the polar cap boundary, and hence presumably across the majority of the dayside magnetopause. The observation of ionospheric signatures of bursty reconnection over a wide extent of local times supports this finding.Key words. Ionosphere (plasma convection; polar ionosphere) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetospheric configuration and dynamics)

Peculiar near range echoes observed in summer with the SuperDARN HF radar in Finland are presented. The echoes were detected at four frequencies of 9, 11, 13 and 15 MHz at slant ranges of 105–250 km for about 100 min. Interferometer measurements indicate that the echoes are returned from 80–100 km altitudes with elevation angles of 20°–60°. Echo power (< 16 dB), Doppler velocity (between –30 and + 30 ms-1) and spectral width (< 60 ms-1) fluctuate with periods of several to 20 min, perhaps due to short–period atmospheric gravity waves. When the HF radar detected the echoes, a vertical incidence MST radar, located at Esrange in Sweden (650 km north of the HF radar site), observed polar mesosphere summer echoes (PMSE) at altitudes of 80–90 km. This fact suggests that the near range HF echoes are PMSE at HF band, although both radars did not probe a common volume. With increasing radar frequency, HF echo ranges are closer to the radar site and echo power becomes weaker. Possible mechanisms to explain these features are discussed.Key words. Meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (middle atmosphere dynamics; thermospheric dynamics; waves and tides; instruments and techniques)

We study a brightening of the Lyman-a emission in the cusp which occurred in response to a short-lived south-ward turning of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) during a period of strongly enhanced solar wind plasma concentration. The cusp proton emission is detected using the SI-12 channel of the FUV imager on the IMAGE spacecraft. Analysis of the IMF observations recorded by the ACE and Wind spacecraft reveals that the assumption of a constant propagation lag from the upstream spacecraft to the Earth is not adequate for these high time-resolution studies. The variations of the southward IMF component observed by ACE and Wind allow for the calculation of the ACE-to-Earth lag as a function of time. Application of the derived propagation delays reveals that the intensity of the cusp emission varied systematically with the IMF clock angle, the relationship being particularly striking when the intensity is normalised to allow for the variation in the upstream solar wind proton concentration. The latitude of the cusp migrated equatorward while the lagged IMF pointed southward, confirming the lag calculation and indicating ongoing magnetopause reconnection. Dayside convection, as monitored by the SuperDARN network of radars, responded rapidly to the IMF changes but lagged behind the cusp proton emission response: this is shown to be as predicted by the model of flow excitation by Cowley and Lockwood (1992). We use the numerical cusp ion precipitation model of Lockwood and Davis (1996), along with modelled Lyman-a emission efficiency and the SI-12 instrument response, to investigate the effect of the sheath field clock angle on the acceleration of ions on crossing the dayside magnetopause. This modelling reveals that the emission commences on each reconnected field line 2–2.5 min after it is opened and peaks 3–5 min after it is opened. We discuss how comparison of the Lyman-a intensities with oxygen emissions observed simultaneously by the SI-13 channel of the FUV instrument offers an opportunity to test whether or not the clock angle dependence is consistent with the "component" or the "anti-parallel" reconnection hypothesis.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; solar wind-magnetosphere interactions) – Space plasma physics (magnetic reconnection)

Multi-frequency observations of E-region coherent backscatter from decametre waves reveal that auroral echoes tend to comprise two spectral components superimposed, one at low Doppler shifts, below 250 ms-1, and the other Doppler shifted to near the ion-acoustic speed or above, up to 800 ms-1. The low Doppler shift component occurs at all look directions; Doppler shifts near the ion acoustic speed occur when looking at low flow angles along the direction of the electron drift in the electrojet, and Doppler shifts in excess of the ion acoustic speed occur at intermediate flow angles. The latter population appears most commonly at radar frequencies near 10–12 MHz, with its occurrence decreasing dramatically at higher frequencies. The velocity of the high Doppler shift echoes increases with increasing radar frequency, or irregularity wave number k. The velocity of the low Doppler shift population appears to be suppressed significantly below the line-of-sight component of the electron drift. Initial estimates of the altitude from which scatter occurs suggest that the high Doppler shift echoes originate from higher in the E-region than the low Doppler shift echoes, certainly in the eastward electrojet. We discuss these observations with reference to the theories of de/stabilization of two-stream waves by electron density gradients and electrostatic ion cyclotron waves excited by field-parallel electron drifts.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities)

We present multi-instrument observations using the meridian scanning photometer (MSP) at NyAlesund, the EISCAT Svalbard radar (ESR) and the CUTLASS Finland HF radar, to investigate the dynamics of the cusp region during pulsed reconnection events. The optical data obtained from the MSP indicate the presence of several poleward-moving auroral forms (PMAFs) which have been previously identified as the auroral signature of pulsed reconnection. Furthermore, the optical green line (557.7 nm) luminosity indicates a loss of emission equatorward of the location of the onset of the PMAFs, characteristic of magnetospheric plasma escaping to the magnetosheath along newly opened field lines. This reduction in green line luminosity creates a "dark region", the equatorward edge of which is found to lie close to the boundary between high and low spectral widths observed by the CUTLASS Finland radar. High spectral widths on the dayside have previously been identified as a good indicator of cusp backscatter. Both of these boundaries have been suggested to provide an accurate representation of the location of the open/closed field line boundary. The ESR observations show enhancements in electron density and electron temperature occurring in conjunction with the optical PMAFs. The observations demonstrate some correspondence with the theoretical predictions of Davis and Lockwood (1996), who used an auroral precipitation model to predict ESR observations in the vicinity of the cusp. However, the limitations of this model are apparent under conditions of large plasma flows in the ionosphere. Finally, convection velocities obtained from the HF radar data illustrate a flow regime similar to that predicted to be driven by strong IMF By, as described by Cowley and Lockwood (1992), demonstrating an initial azimuthal flow followed by a rotation to more poleward directions.Key words. Ionosphere (ionosphere-magnetosphere interactions; particle precipitation) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers)

In a case study we demonstrate the spatiotemporal structure of aurora and plasma convection in the cusp/polar cap when the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) Bz < 0 and By ~ | Bz | (clock angle in GSM Y - Z plane: ~ 135°). This IMF orientation elicited a response different from that corresponding to strongly northward and southward IMF. Our study of this "intermediate state" is based on a combination of ground observations of optical auroral emissions and ionospheric plasma convection. Utilizing all-sky cameras at NyAlesund, Svalbard and Heiss Island (Russian arctic), we are able to monitor the high-latitude auroral activity within the ~10:00–15:00 MLT sector. Information on plasma convection is obtained from the SuperDARN radars, with emphasis placed on line of sight observations from the radar situated in Hankasalmi, Finland (Cutlass). A central feature of the auroral observations in the cusp/polar cap region is a ~ 30-min long sequence of four brightening events, some of which consists of latitudinally and longitudinally separated forms, which are found to be associated with pulsed ionospheric flows in merging and lobe convection cells. The auroral/convection events may be separated into different forms/cells and phases, reflecting a spatiotem-poral evolution of the reconnection process on the dayside magnetopause. The initial phase consists of a brightening in the postnoon sector (~ 12:00–14:00 MLT) at ~ 73° MLAT, accompanied by a pulse of enhanced westward convection in the postnoon merging cell. Thereafter, the event evolution comprises two phenomena which occur almost simultaneously: (1) westward expansion of the auroral brightening (equatorward boundary intensification) across noon, into the ~ 10:00–12:00 MLT sector, where the plasma convection subsequently turns almost due north, in the convection throat, and where classical poleward moving auroral forms (PMAFs) are observed; and (2) auroral brightening at slightly higher latitudes (~ 75° MLAT) in the postnoon lobe cell, with expansion towards noon, giving rise to a clear cusp bifurcation. The fading phase of PMAFs is accompanied by a "patch" of enhanced (~ 1 km/s) poleward-directed merging cell convection at high latitudes (75–82° MLAT), e.g. more than 500 km poleward of the cusp equatorward boundary. The major aurora/convection events are recurring at ~ 5–10 min intervals. Key words. Magnetospheric physics (auroral phenomena; magnetopause, cusp, and boundary layers; plasma convection)

We report the simultaneous observation of 1.6–1.7 mHz pulsations in the ionospheric F-region with the CUTLASS bistatic HF radar and an HF Doppler sounder, on the ground with the IMAGE and SAMNET magnetometer arrays, and in the upstream solar wind. CUTLASS was at the time being operated in a special mode optimized for high resolution studies of ULF waves. A novel use is made of the ground returns to detect the ionospheric signature of ULF waves. The pulsations were initiated by a strong, sharp decrease in solar wind dynamic pressure near 09:28 UT on 23 February 1996, and persisted for some hours. They were observed with the magnetometers over 20° in latitude, coupling to a field line resonance near 72° magnetic latitude. The magnetic pulsations had azimuthal m numbers ~ -2, consistent with propagation away from the noon sector. The radars show transient high velocity flows in the cusp and auroral zones, poleward of the field line resonance, and small amplitude 1.6–1.7 mHz F-region oscillations across widely spaced regions at lower latitudes. The latter were detected in the radar ground scatter returns and also with the vertical incidence Doppler sounder. Their amplitude is of the order of ± 10 ms-1. A similar perturbation frequency was present in the solar wind pressure recorded by the WIND spacecraft. The initial solar wind pressure decrease was also associated with a decrease in cosmic noise absorption on an imaging riometer near 66° magnetic latitude. The observations suggest that perturbations in the solar wind pressure or IMF result in fast compressional mode waves that propagate through the magnetosphere and drive forced and resonant oscillations of geomagnetic field lines. The compressional wave field may also stimulate ionospheric perturbations. The observations demonstrate that HF radar ground scatter may contain important information on small-amplitude features, extending the scope and capability of these radars to track features in the ionosphere.Key words. Ionosphere (Ionosphere-magnetosphere interactions; ionospheric disturbances) – Magnetospheric physics (MHD waves and instabilities)

A statistical investigation of the Doppler spectral width parameter routinely observed by HF coherent radars has been conducted between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres for the nightside ionosphere. Data from the SuperDARN radars at Thykkvibær, Iceland and Syowa East, Antarctica have been employed for this purpose. Both radars frequently observe regions of high (>200 ms-1) spectral width polewards of low (-1) spectral width. Three years of data from both radars have been analysed both for the spectral width and line of sight velocity. The pointing direction of these two radars is such that the flow reversal boundary may be estimated from the velocity data, and therefore, we have an estimate of the open/closed field line boundary location for comparison with the high spectral widths. Five key observations regarding the behaviour of the spectral width on the nightside have been made. These are (i) the two radars observe similar characteristics on a statistical basis; (ii) a latitudinal dependence related to magnetic local time is found in both hemispheres; (iii) a seasonal dependence of the spectral width is observed by both radars, which shows a marked absence of latitudinal dependence during the summer months; (iv) in general, the Syowa East spectral width tends to be larger than that from Iceland East, and (v) the highest spectral widths seem to appear on both open and closed field lines. Points (i) and (ii) indicate that the cause of high spectral width is magnetospheric in origin. Point (iii) suggests that either the propagation of the HF radio waves to regions of high spectral width or the generating mechanism(s) for high spectral width is affected by solar illumination or other seasonal effects. Point (iv) suggests that the radar beams from each of the radars are subject either to different instrumental or propagation effects, or different geophysical conditions due to their locations, although we suggest that this result is more likely to be due to geophysical effects. Point (v) leads us to conclude that, in general, the boundary between low and high spectral width will not be a good proxy for the open/closed field line boundary.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities)

For the first time three different methods have been used to calculate the global merging rate during the same substorm growth phase. The ionospheric plasma drift was monitored by six of the Northern Hemisphere SuperDARN radars, allowing the convection pattern to be studied over 12 h of magnetic local time. The radars observed reconnection signatures on the dayside simultaneously with substorm signatures on the nightside. The three methods to calculate the global merging rate are: (i) the equatorward expansion of radar backscatter on the nightside, which provides an estimate of the rate of polar cap expansion, while upstream WIND measurements gave an estimate of the reconnection electric fields; (ii) the derivation of the dayside boundary normal plasma flow velocity and an estimate of the extent of the ionospheric merging gap, from radar observation of dayside reconnection; (iii) utilizing the map-potential technique to map the high-latitude plasma flow and cross polar cap potential (Ruohoniemi and Baker, 1998), allowing the global dayside merging rate to be calculated. The three methods support an extensive magnetopause X-line length of between 30 ± 12RE and 35 ± 15 RE (assuming a single X-line and constant merging rate). Such close agreement between the different methods of calculation are unexpected, especially as the length of the magnetopause X-line is not well known.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; magnetosphere – ionosphere interactions; solar-wind magnetosphere interactions)

Two Doppler coherent radar systems are currently working at Hankasalmi, Finland, the STARE and CUTLASS radars operating at ~144 MHz and ~12 MHz, respectively. The STARE beam 3 is nearly co-located with the CUTLASS beam 5, providing an opportunity for echo velocity comparison along the same direction but at significantly different radar frequencies. In this study we consider an event when STARE radar echoes are detected at the same ranges as CUT-LASS radar echoes. The observations are complemented by EISCAT measurements of the ionospheric electric field and electron density behaviour at one range of 900 km. Two separate situations are studied; for the first one, CUTLASS observed F-region echoes (including the range of the EIS-CAT measurements), while for the second one CUTLASS observed E-region echoes. In both cases STARE E-region measurements were available. We show that F-region CUT-LASS velocities agree well with the convection component along the CUTLASS radar beam, while STARE velocities are typically smaller by a factor of 2–3. For the second case, STARE velocities are found to be either smaller or larger than CUTLASS velocities, depending on the range. Plasma physics of E-and F-region irregularities is discussed in attempt to explain the inferred relationship between various velocities. Special attention is paid to ionospheric refraction that is important for the detection of 12-MHz echoes.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma waves and instabilities; auroral ionosphere)

Several factors are known to control the HF echo occurrence rate, including electron density distribution in the ionosphere (affecting the propagation path of the radar wave), D-region radio wave absorption, and ionospheric irregularity intensity. In this study, we consider 4 days of CUTLASS Finland radar observations over an area where the EISCAT incoherent scatter radar has continuously monitored ionospheric parameters. We illustrate that for the event under consideration, the D-region absorption was not the major factor affecting the echo appearance. We show that the electron density distribution and the radar frequency selection were much more significant factors. The electron density magnitude affects the echo occurrence in two different ways. For small F-region densities, a minimum value of 1 × 1011 m-3 is required to have sufficient radio wave refraction so that the orthogonality (with the magnetic field lines) condition is met. For too large densities, radio wave strong "over-refraction" leads to the ionospheric echo disappearance. We estimate that the over-refraction is important for densities greater than 4 × 1011 m-3. We also investigated the backscatter power and the electric field magnitude relationship and found no obvious relationship contrary to the expectation that the gradient-drift plasma instability would lead to stronger irregularity intensity/echo power for larger electric fields.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma waves and instabilities; auroral ionosphere)

A previous case study found a relationship between high spectral width measured by the CUTLASS Finland HF radar and elevated electron temperatures observed by the EISCAT and ESR incoherent scatter radars in the post-midnight sector of magnetic local time. This paper expands that work by briefly re-examining that interval and looking in depth at two further case studies. In all three cases a region of high HF spectral width (>200 ms-1) exists poleward of a region of low HF spectral width (-1). Each case, however, occurs under quite different geomagnetic conditions. The original case study occurred during an interval with no observed electrojet activity, the second study during a transition from quiet to active conditions with a clear band of ion frictional heating indicating the location of the flow reversal boundary, and the third during an isolated sub-storm. These case studies indicate that the relationship between elevated electron temperature and high HF radar spectral width appears on closed field lines after 03:00 magnetic local time (MLT) on the nightside. It is not clear whether the same relationship would hold on open field lines, since our analysis of this relationship is restricted in latitude. We find two important properties of high spectral width data on the nightside. Firstly the high spectral width values occur on both open and closed field lines, and secondly that the power spectra which exhibit high widths are both single-peak and multiple-peak. In general the regions of high spectral width (>200 ms-1) have more multiple-peak spectra than the regions of low spectral widths whilst still maintaining a majority of single-peak spectra. We also find that the region of ion frictional heating is collocated with many multiple-peak HF spectra. Several mechanisms for the generation of high spectral width have been proposed which would produce multiple-peak spectra, these are discussed in relation to the data presented here. Since the regions of high spectral width are observed both on closed and open field lines the use of the boundary between low and high spectral width as an ionospheric proxy for the open/closed field line boundary is not a simple matter, if indeed it is possible at all.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities)

We performed a statistical analysis of the occurrence distribution of Doppler spectral width around the day-side high-latitude ionosphere using data from the conjugate radar pair composed of the CUTLASS Iceland-East radar in the Northern Hemisphere and the SENSU Syowa-East radar in the Southern Hemisphere. Three types of spectral width distribution were identified: (1) an exponential-like distribution in the lower magnetic latitudes (below 72°), (2) a Gaussian-like distribution around a few degrees magnetic latitude, centered on 78°, and (3) another type of distribution in the higher magnetic latitudes (above 80°). The first two are considered to represent the geophysical regimes such as the LLBL and the cusp, respectively, because they are similar to the spectral width distributions within the LLBL and the cusp, as classified by Baker et al. (1995). The distribution found above 80° magnetic latitude has been clarified for the first time in this study. This distribution has similarities to the exponential-like distribution in the lower latitude part, although clear differences also exist in their characteristics. These three spectral width distributions are commonly identified in conjugate hemispheres. The latitudinal transition from one distribution to another exhibits basically the same trend between two hemispheres. There is, however, an interhemispheric difference in the form of the distribution around the cusp latitudes, such that spectral width values obtained from Syowa-East are larger than those from Iceland-East. On the basis of the spectral width characteristics, the average locations of the cusp and the open/closed field line boundary are estimated statistically.Key words. Ionosphere (ionosphere-magnetosphere inter-actions; plasma convection) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp, and boundary layers)

Simultaneous all-sky camera and HF radar observations of the visual and E-region radar aurora in the west-ward electrojet suggest a close relationship between a pair of parallel east-west-aligned auroral arcs, separated by ~ 30 km, and a region of strong radar backscatter. Poleward of this a broader region of radar backscatter is observed, though the spectral characteristics of the echoes in these two regions differ considerably. We suggest that the visual aurorae and their radar counterparts are produced in a region of upward field-aligned current (FAC), whereas the backscatter poleward of this is associated with downward FAC. Relatively low electric fields ( ~ 10 mV m-1) are observed in the vicinity of the arc system, suggesting that in this case, two-stream waves are not directly generated through the electrodynamics of the arc. Rather, the generation of irregularities is most probably associated with the gradient drift instability operating within horizontal electron density gradients produced by the filamentary nature of the arc FAC system. The observation of high Doppler shift echoes superimposed on slow background flow within the region of backscatter poleward of the visual aurora is argued to be consistent with previous suggestions that the ion-acoustic instability threshold is reduced in the presence of upwelling thermal electrons carrying downward FAC.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities; particle precipitation)

High-time resolution data from the two Iceland SuperDARN HF radars show very strong nightside convection activity during a prolonged period of low geomagnetic activity and northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). Flows bursts with velocities ranging from 0.8 to 1.7 km/s are observed to propagate in the sunward direction with phase velocities up to 1.5 km/s. These bursts occur over several hours of MLT in the 20:00–01:00 MLT sector, in the evening-side sunward convection. Data from a simultaneous DMSP pass and POLAR UVI images show a very contracted polar cap and extended regions of auroral particle precipitation from the magnetospheric boundaries. A DMSP pass over the Iceland-West field-of-view while one of these sporadic bursts of enhanced flow is observed, indicates that the flow bursts appear within the plasma sheet and at its outward edge, which excludes Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities at the magnetopause boundary as the generation mechanism. In the nightside region, the precipitation is more spot-like and the convection organizes itself as clockwise U-shaped structures. We interpret these flow bursts as the convective transport following plasma injection events from the tail into the night-side ionosphere. We show that during this period, where the IMF clock angle is around 70°, the dayside magnetosphere is not completely closed.Key words. Ionosphere (Auroral ionosphere; Ionospheremagnetosphere interactions; Particle precipitation)

Observations from the EISCAT VHF incoherent scatter radar system in northern Norway, during a run of the common programme CP-4, reveal a series of poleward-propagating F-region electron density enhancements in the pre-noon sector on 23 November 1999. These plasma density features, which are observed under conditions of a strongly southward interplanetary magnetic field, exhibit a recurrence rate of under 10 min and appear to emanate from the vicinity of the open/closed field-line boundary from where they travel into the polar cap; this is suggestive of their being an ionospheric response to transient reconnection at the day-side magnetopause (flux transfer events). Simultaneous with the density structures detected by the VHF radar, poleward-moving radar auroral forms (PMRAFs) are observed by the Finland HF coherent scatter radar. It is thought that PM-RAFs, which are commonly observed near local noon by HF radars, are also related to flux transfer events, although the specific mechanism for the generation of the field-aligned irregularities within such features is not well understood. The HF observations suggest, that for much of their existence, the PMRAFs trace fossil signatures of transient reconnection rather than revealing the footprint of active reconnection itself; this is evidenced not least by the fact that the PMRAFs become narrower in spectral width as they evolve away from the region of more classical, broad cusp scatter in which they originate. Interpretation of the HF observations with reference to the plasma parameters diagnosed by the incoherent scatter radar suggests that as the PMRAFs migrate away from the reconnection site and across the polar cap, entrained in the ambient antisunward flow, the irregularities therein are generated by the presence of gradients in the electron density, with these gradients having been formed through structuring of the ionosphere in the cusp region in response to transient reconnection.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (magnetosphere-ionosphere interaction) – ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma density and temperature)

Using experimental data from the Cutlass Super-DARN HF radars and from a subset of ground magnetometers of the IMAGE Scandinavian chain, the response of the ionosphere in the noon sector to a solar wind pressure increase is studied. The emphasis is on the signature of the convection vortices and of the Hall currents that are associated with the pair of opposite parallel currents flowing along the morning and afternoon high-latitude magnetic field lines. We show that the sudden commencement is characterised by an equatorward convection, immediately followed (within less than 3 min) by a strong poleward plasma motion. These results are shown to agree qualitatively with the global model of sudden commencement of Araki (1994).Key words. Ionosphere (plasma convection; electric fields and currents) – Magnetospheric physics (solar wind-magnetosphere interactions)

The aim of this paper is to advance the current understanding of the spectral width parameter observed by coherent high frequency (HF) radars. In particular, we address the relationship of a frequently observed gradient, between low ( < 200 m/s) and high ( > 200 m/s) spectral width, to magnetospheric boundaries. Previous work has linked this gradient in the spectral width, in the nightside sector of magnetic local time, to the Polar Cap Boundary (PCB), and also to the boundary between the Central Plasma Sheet (CPS) and the Plasma Sheet Boundary Layer (PSBL). The present case study investigates the former by comparison with the 630.0 nm optical emission. No suitable data were available to test the second of the two hypotheses. It is found that during the interval in question the spectral width gradient is within the region of the 630.0 nm optical emission. A comparison of coherent and incoherent scatter radar data is also conducted, which indicates that values of high spectral width are typically collocated with elevated F-region electron temperatures. We conclude that the high spectral width region in the interval under study is associated with particle precipitation and also that the spectral width gradient is not a reliable method for locating the PCB.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities)

Three intervals of polar patch formation, as observed by the CUTLASS Finland HF coherent radar, are presented. Simultaneous observations from a vertical ionosonde located at Longyearbyen on Svalbard, situated in the dayside convection throat region, allow for F-region plasma structuring, leading to polar cap patch formation to be determined. Solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) precursors of polar patch formation are investigated with MFI and SWE measurements from the Wind spacecraft. We find that in the cases studied polar cap patches are formed in response to changes in the orientation of the IMF, especially in the By component. The resultant changes in the dayside convection pattern alter the source of plasma drifting through the convection throat region into the polar cap. When the convection flow is directed predominantly polewards, high density sub-auroral or mid-latitude plasma enters the polar cap; when flow is directed zonally, low density plasma entrained in the convection return flow replaces it. This mechanism can act to significantly structure the plasma density at sub-auroral or mid-latitudes as well as in the polar cap. In winter months, polar patches appear to be produced by depletions in an otherwise high plasma density tongue of ionisation. In summer months, patches are enhancements of an otherwise low density tongue of ionisation.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma convection; polar ionosphere)

We perform a case study of a favourable conjunction of overpasses of the DMSP F11 and F13 spacecraft with the field of view of the Hankasalmi HF coherent scatter. At the time, pulsed ionospheric flows (PIFs) were clearly observed at a high-latitude in the radar field of view. The PIFs were associated with medium spectral width values and were identified as the fossilized signatures of pulsed dayside reconnection. Simultaneously, DMSP spectrograms from the two spacecraft showed dispersed ion signatures, observed equatorwards of the PIF signatures. We identified dayside high-latitude magnetosphere boundaries; these boundaries agreed well with those defined using the algorithm on the JHU/APL auroral particle website (Haerendel et al., 1978; Newell and Meng, 1988, 1995; Newell et al., 1991a, 1991b, 1991c; Traver et al., 1991). We conclude that in this case study the dispersed ion signatures map to regions of very newly-opened flux. It is only when this flux has convected polewards that the signatures of the PIFs with medium spectral widths are observed by the HF radars. These particular PIF signatures map to regions of mantle precipitation, i.e. recently reconnected flux.Key words. Ionosphere (ionosphere-magnetosphere interaction) – Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; plasma convection)

During the operation of the EISCAT high power facility (heater) at Tromsø, Norway, on 8 October 1998, the FAST spacecraft made electric field and particle observations in the inner magnetosphere at 0.39 Earth radii above the heated ionospheric region. Measurements of the direct current electric field clearly exhibit oscillations with a frequency close to the modulated frequency of heater ( ~ 3 Hz) and an amplitude of ~ 2 - 5 mV m-1. Thermal electron data from the electrostatic analyser show the modulation at the same frequency of the downward electron fluxes. During this period the EISCAT UHF incoherent scatter radar, sited also at Tromsø, measured a significant enhancement of the electron density in E-layer up to 2 · 1012 m-3. These observations have prompted us to make quantitative estimates of the expected pulsations in the inner magnetosphere caused by the modulated HF heating of lower ionosphere. Under the conditions of the strong electron precipitation in the ionosphere, which took place during the FAST observations, the primary current caused by the perturbation of the conductivity in the heated region is closed entirely by the parallel current which leaks into the magnetosphere. In such circumstances the conditions at the ionosphere-magnetosphere boundary are most favourable for the launching of an Alfvén wave: it is launched from the node in the gradient of the scalar potential which is proportional to the parallel current. The parallel electric field of the Alfvén wave is significant in the region where the electron inertial length is of order of the transverse wavelength of the Alfvén wave or larger and may effectively accelerate superthermal electrons downward into the ionosphere.Key words. Ionosphere (active experiments; ionosphere – magnetosphere interactions; particle acceleration)

During the interval between 8:00–9:30 on 14 January 2001, the four Cluster spacecraft were moving from the central magnetospheric lobe, through the dusk sector mantle, on their way towards intersecting the magnetopause near 15:00 MLT and 15:00 UT. Throughout this interval, the EISCAT Svalbard Radar (ESR) at Longyearbyen observed a series of poleward-moving transient events of enhanced F-region plasma concentration ("polar cap patches"), with a repetition period of the order of 10 min. Allowing for the estimated solar wind propagation delay of 75 ( ± 5) min, the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) had a southward component during most of the interval. The magnetic footprint of the Cluster spacecraft, mapped to the ionosphere using the Tsyganenko T96 model (with input conditions prevailing during this event), was to the east of the ESR beams. Around 09:05 UT, the DMSP-F12 satellite flew over the ESR and showed a sawtooth cusp ion dispersion signature that also extended into the electrons on the equatorward edge of the cusp, revealing a pulsed magnetopause reconnection. The consequent enhanced ionospheric flow events were imaged by the SuperDARN HF backscatter radars. The average convection patterns (derived using the AMIE technique on data from the magnetometers, the EISCAT and SuperDARN radars, and the DMSP satellites) show that the associated poleward-moving events also convected over the predicted footprint of the Cluster spacecraft. Cluster observed enhancements in the fluxes of both electrons and ions. These events were found to be essentially identical at all four spacecraft, indicating that they had a much larger spatial scale than the satellite separation of the order of 600 km. Some of the events show a correspondence between the lowest energy magnetosheath electrons detected by the PEACE instrument on Cluster (10–20 eV) and the topside ionospheric enhancements seen by the ESR (at 400–700 km). We suggest that a potential barrier at the magnetopause, which prevents the lowest energy electrons from entering the magnetosphere, is reduced when and where the boundary-normal magnetic field is enhanced and that the observed polar cap patches are produced by the consequent enhanced precipitation of the lowest energy electrons, making them and the low energy electron precipitation fossil remnants of the magnetopause reconnection rate pulses.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (polar cap phenomena; solar wind – magnetosphere interactions; magnetosphere – ionosphere interactions)

We study a series of transient entries into the low-latitude boundary layer (LLBL) of all four Cluster spacecraft during an outbound pass through the mid-afternoon magnetopause ( [ XGSM, YGSM, ZGSM ] ≈ [ 2, 7, 9 ] RE). The events take place during an interval of northward IMF, as seen in the data from the ACE satellite and lagged by a propagation delay of 75 min that is welldefined by two separate studies: (1) the magnetospheric variations prior to the northward turning (Lockwood et al., 2001, this issue) and (2) the field clock angle seen by Cluster after it had emerged into the magnetosheath (Opgenoorth et al., 2001, this issue). With an additional lag of 16.5 min, the transient LLBL events correlate well with swings of the IMF clock angle (in GSM) to near 90°. Most of this additional lag is explained by ground-based observations, which reveal signatures of transient reconnection in the pre-noon sector that then take 10–15 min to propagate eastward to 15 MLT, where they are observed by Cluster. The eastward phase speed of these signatures agrees very well with the motion deduced by the cross-correlation of the signatures seen on the four Cluster spacecraft. The evidence that these events are reconnection pulses includes: transient erosion of the noon 630 nm (cusp/cleft) aurora to lower latitudes; transient and travelling enhancements of the flow into the polar cap, imaged by the AMIE technique; and poleward-moving events moving into the polar cap, seen by the EISCAT Svalbard Radar (ESR). A pass of the DMSP-F15 satellite reveals that the open field lines near noon have been opened for some time: the more recently opened field lines were found closer to dusk where the flow transient and the poleward-moving event intersected the satellite pass. The events at Cluster have ion and electron characteristics predicted and observed by Lockwood and Hapgood (1998) for a Flux Transfer Event (FTE), with allowance for magnetospheric ion reflection at Alfvénic disturbances in the magnetopause reconnection layer. Like FTEs, the events are about 1 RE in their direction of motion and show a rise in the magnetic field strength, but unlike FTEs, in general, they show no pressure excess in their core and hence, no characteristic bipolar signature in the boundary-normal component. However, most of the events were observed when the magnetic field was southward, i.e. on the edge of the interior magnetic cusp, or when the field was parallel to the magnetic equatorial plane. Only when the satellite begins to emerge from the exterior boundary (when the field was northward), do the events start to show a pressure excess in their core and the consequent bipolar signature. We identify the events as the first observations of FTEs at middle altitudes.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions; solar wind-magnetosphere interactions)

Cluster magnetic field data are studied during an outbound pass through the post-noon high-latitude magnetopause region on 14 February 2001. The onset of several minute perturbations in the magnetospheric field was observed in conjunction with a southward turn of the interplanetary magnetic field observed upstream by the ACE spacecraft and lagged to the subsolar magnetopause. These perturbations culminated in the observation of four clear magnetospheric flux transfer events (FTEs) adjacent to the magnetopause, together with a highly-structured magnetopause boundary layer containing related field features. Furthermore, clear FTEs were observed later in the magnetosheath. The magnetospheric FTEs were of essentially the same form as the original "flux erosion events" observed in HEOS-2 data at a similar location and under similar interplanetary conditions by Haerendel et al. (1978). We show that the nature of the magnetic perturbations in these events is consistent with the formation of open flux tubes connected to the northern polar ionosphere via pulsed reconnection in the dusk sector magnetopause. The magnetic footprint of the Cluster spacecraft during the boundary passage is shown to map centrally within the fields-of-view of the CUTLASS SuperDARN radars, and to pass across the field-aligned beam of the EISCAT Svalbard radar (ESR) system. It is shown that both the ionospheric flow and the backscatter power in the CUTLASS data pulse are in synchrony with the magnetospheric FTEs and boundary layer structures at the latitude of the Cluster footprint. These flow and power features are subsequently found to propagate poleward, forming classic "pulsed ionospheric flow" and "poleward-moving radar auroral form" structures at higher latitudes. The combined Cluster-CUTLASS observations thus represent a direct demonstration of the coupling of momentum and energy into the magnetosphere-ionosphere system via pulsed magnetopause reconnection. The ESR observations also reveal the nature of the structured and variable polar ionosphere produced by the structured and time-varying precipitation and flow.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere) Magentospheric physics (magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions)

On 14 January 2001, the four Cluster spacecraft passed through the northern magnetospheric mantle in close conjunction to the EISCAT Svalbard Radar (ESR) and approached the post-noon dayside magnetopause over Green-land between 13:00 and 14:00 UT. During that interval, a sudden reorganisation of the high-latitude dayside convection pattern occurred after 13:20 UT, most likely caused by a direction change of the Solar wind magnetic field. The result was an eastward and poleward directed flow-channel, as monitored by the SuperDARN radar network and also by arrays of ground-based magnetometers in Canada, Greenland and Scandinavia. After an initial eastward and later poleward expansion of the flow-channel between 13:20 and 13:40 UT, the four Cluster spacecraft, and the field line footprints covered by the eastward looking scan cycle of the Söndre Strömfjord incoherent scatter radar were engulfed by cusp-like precipitation with transient magnetic and electric field signatures. In addition, the EISCAT Svalbard Radar detected strong transient effects of the convection reorganisation, a poleward moving precipitation, and a fast ion flow-channel in association with the auroral structures that suddenly formed to the west and north of the radar. From a detailed analysis of the coordinated Cluster and ground-based data, it was found that this extraordinary transient convection pattern, indeed, had moved the cusp precipitation from its former pre-noon position into the late post-noon sector, allowing for the first and quite unexpected encounter of the cusp by the Cluster spacecraft. Our findings illustrate the large amplitude of cusp dynamics even in response to moderate solar wind forcing. The global ground-based data proves to be an invaluable tool to monitor the dynamics and width of the affected magnetospheric regions.Key words. Magnetospheric cusp, ionosphere, reconnection, convection flow-channel, Cluster, ground-based observations

We document the activation of transient polar arcs emanating from the cusp within a 15 min long intermediate phase during the transition from a standard two-cell convection pattern, representative of a strongly southward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), to a "reverse" two-cell pattern, representative of strongly northward IMF conditions. During the 2–3 min lifetime of the arc, its base in the cusp, appearing as a bright spot, moved eastward toward noon by ~ 300 km. As the arc moved, it left in its "wake" enhanced cusp precipitation. The polar arc is a tracer of the activation of a lobe convection cell with clockwise vorticity, intruding into the previously established large-scale distorted two-cell pattern, due to an episode of localized lobe reconnection. The lobe cell gives rise to strong flow shear (converging electric field) and an associated sheet of outflowing field-aligned current, which is manifested by the polar arc. The enhanced cusp precipitation represents, in our view, the ionospheric footprint of the lobe reconnection process.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (auroral phenomena; magnetopause, cusp, and boundary layers; plasma convection)

The Doppler shifts of meteor echoes measured by the SuperDARN HF radar network have been used in several studies to observe neutral winds in the upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere region. In the absence of accurate height information for individual meteors, it has been necessary to assume a statistical mean meteor layer where the variations in altitude were not correlated to changes in the horizontal winds. Observations of spectral width distribution variations made by the radars allow an independent determination of the systematic error in the height. We have investigated the dependence of this distribution on a number of factors including the radar geometry, diurnal and seasonal cycles, variations in solar UV irradiance and geomagnetic activity. Changes in the altitude of the mean meteor layer observed at different radar ranges provide us with some insight into the structure of the upper mesosphere and the lower thermosphere within which the meteors are being ablated. An examination of the spectral widths, as measured by the CUT-LASS Finland radar, in the days preceding and following a Storm Sudden Commencement in April 1997, illustrates how the spectral properties of the observed region can be affected. The variations in the widths were consistent with model calculations of the changes to the temperature profile over this interval. Further refinements in the determination of the spectral width are outlined for future experiments.Key words. Meterology and atmospheric dynamics (middle atmosphere dynamics; thermospheric dynamics; instruments and techniques)

A comparison of HF radar backscatter observed by the CUTLASS Finland radar, meridian scanning photometer data from Longyearbyen, magnetic field variations from IMAGE stations, and particle precipitation measured by the DMSP F12 spacecraft is presented. The interval under discussion occurred in the pre-midnight local time sector, during a period of weakly northward interplanetary magnetic field. A region of HF backscatter, typically 8 degrees wide, occurred in the field of view of the CUTLASS Finland radar. A well defined gradient in the spectral width parameter was present, with mainly low (< 200 m s - 1 ) spectral widths in the lower latitude part of the scatter and predominantly large (> 200 ms - 1 ) spectral widths in the higher latitude part. The relationship between the spectral width and the red line (630.0 nm) emission measured by the meridian scanning photometer is considered. The poleward border of the red line emission, which has, in the past, been proposed as being representative of the polar cap boundary, was co-located to within 1° of magnetic latitude with the gradient in spectral width for part of the interval. Statistically, large spectral widths occurred poleward of the red line emission, while small spectral widths occurred within or equatorward of the red line emission. Near simultaneous DMSP particle observations in the 20 eV to 20 keV range indicate that the poleward border of the red line emission and the gradient in spectral width occurred at the same latitude as the transition from auroral oval to polar rain particle energies. We conclude that the large spectral widths were not caused by particle precipitation associated with the auroral oval. There were two periods of special interest when the relationship between the red line and the spectral width broke down. The first of these happened during enhanced red line and green line (557.7 nm) emission, with a drop out of the radar scatter and an enhanced, narrow westward electrojet. We conclude that this event was a magnetospheric substorm occurring at much higher than usual latitudes. The second period of special interest happened when equatorward moving bands of large spectral width occurred within the region of scatter. Up to 4 of these bands were present during an interval of 100 minutes. Associated with these narrow bands of large spectral width were narrow channels of enhanced westward ion velocities. We conclude that these equatorward moving bands of large spectral width may be related to reconnection processes in the tail. The observations demonstrate that the tail continues to be active even under low solar wind energy input conditions. Furthermore, we conclude that the gradient in the spectral width may be used as a proxy for the polar cap boundary, but only with extreme caution.Key words. Ionosphere (ionosphere-magnetosphere inter-actions; polar ionosphere) – Magnetospheric physics (storms and substorms)

Observations of E region backscatter by the Ice-land East SuperDARN HF radar from the 30 minute period 2330 to 2400 UT on 13 September 1999 are presented, along with simultaneous observations of auroral luminosity from two all-sky cameras. Interferometric techniques are employed to estimate the altitude of origin of each echo observed by the radar. Under investigation is a region of backscatter which is L-shell aligned and exists in a region of low auroral luminosity bounded to the north and the south by two auroral arcs. The spectral characteristics of the backscatter fall into three main populations: broad, low Doppler shift spectra; narrow, high Doppler shift spectra; and exceptionally narrow, low Doppler shift spectra. The first two populations are similar to type II and type I spectra observed with VHF radars, respectively. These populations scatter from near the peak of the E region. The high Doppler shift population appears to exist in a region of sub-critical electric field. The third population originates below the E region peak at altitudes between 80 and 100 km. We argue that a non-coherent scattering process is responsible for this backscatter.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; ionospheric irregularities)

Far Ultra Violet (FUV) signatures in the polar ionosphere during a period of magnetopause reconnection are compared with ionospheric flows measured in the cusp ‘throat’ and dusk cell by the CUTLASS Hankasalmi HF radar. Regions of peak FUV emission in the 130.4 nm and 135.6 nm range, observed by the Polar spacecraft’s VIS Earth Camera, consistently lie at the turning point of the flows from the dusk cell, poleward into the throat, and at the equatorward edge of the region of high and varied radar spectral-width associated with the cusp. The Equator-S spacecraft was near the magnetopause at the time of the ionospheric observations and geomagnetically conjugate with the region of ionosphere observed by the radar. Flux transfer events (FTEs), suggestive of bursty reconnection between the IMF and geomagnetic fields, were observed by Equator-S prior to and during the periods of high FUV emission. Enhanced poleward ionospheric flow velocities in the polar cusp region, previously shown to be associated with bursty reconnection, consistently lie poleward of the enhanced FUV optical feature. The enhanced optical feature is consistent with the expected position of the largest upward region 1 field-aligned current, associated with electron precipitation, on the dusk edge of the merging gap. The optical feature moves duskward and equatorward during the course of the reconnection sequence, consistent with expansion of the merging line and the polar cap with newly added open magnetic flux by the FTEs. The DMSP F14 spacecraft passed through the enhanced FUV region and measured strong, structured electron precipitation far greater than in the adjacent regions.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (current systems; magnetopause, cusp and boundary layers; magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions)

Observations of HF radar backscatter from the auroral electrojet E region indicate the presence of five major spectral populations, as opposed to the two predominant spectral populations, types I and II, observed in the VHF regime. The Doppler shift, spectral width, backscatter power, and flow angle dependencies of these five populations are investigated and described. Two of these populations are identified with type I and type II spectral classes, and hence, are thought to be generated by the two-stream and gradient drift instabilities, respectively. The remaining three populations occur over a range of velocities which can greatly exceed the ion acoustic speed, the usual limiting velocity in VHF radar observations of the E region. The generation of these spectral populations is discussed in terms of electron density gradients in the electrojet region and recent non-linear theories of E region irregularity generation.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities)

The 2D morphology of coherent HF radar and optical cusp aurora has been studied for conditions of predominantly southward IMF conditions, which favours low-latitude boundary layer reconnection. Despite the variability in shape of radar cusp Doppler spectra, the spectral width criterion of > 220 m s–1 proves to be a robust cusp discriminator. For extended periods of well-developed radar backscatter echoes, the equatorward boundary of the > 220 m s–1 spectral width enhancement lines up remarkably well with the equatorward boundary of the optical cusp aurora. The spectral width boundary is however poorly determined during development and fading of radar cusp backscatter. Closer inspection of radar Doppler profile characteristics suggests that a combination of spectral width and shape may advance boundary layer identification by HF radar. For the two December days studied the onset of radar cusp backscatter occurred within pre-existing 630.0 nm cusp auroral activity and appear to be initiated by sunrise, i.e. favourable radio wave propagation conditions had to develop. Better methods are put forward for analysing optical data, and for physical interpretation of HF radar data, and for combining these data, as applied to detection, tracking, and better understanding of dayside aurora. The broader motivation of this work is to develop wider use by the scientific community, of results of these techniques, to accelerate understanding of dynamic high-latitude boundary-processes. The contributions in this work are: (1) improved techniques of analysis of observational data, yielding meaningfully enhanced accuracy for deduced cusp locations; (2) a correspondingly more pronounced validation of correlation of boundary locations derived from the observational data set; and (3) a firmer physical rationale as to why the good correlation observed should theoretically be expected.Key words: Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; polar ionosphere)

SPEAR is a new polar cap HF radar facility which is to be deployed on Svalbard. The principal capabilities of SPEAR will include the generation of artificial plasma irregularities, operation as an 'all-sky' HF radar, the excitation of ULF waves, and remote sounding of the magnetosphere. Operation of SPEAR in conjunction with the multitude of other instruments on Svalbard, including the EISCAT Svalbard radar, and the overlap of its extensive field-of-view with that of several of the HF radars in the SuperDARN network, will enable in-depth diagnosis of many geophysical and plasma phenomena associated with the cusp region and the substorm expansion phase. Moreover, its ability to produce artificial radar aurora will provide a means for the other instruments to undertake polar cap plasma physics experiments in a controlled manner. Another potential use of the facility is in 'field-line tagging' experiments, for coordinated ground-satellite experiments. Here the scientific objectives of SPEAR are detailed, along with the proposed technical specifications of the system.Key words: Ionosphere (active experiments) – Radio science (instruments and techniques) – Space plasma physics (instruments and techniques)

Dayside poleward moving auroral forms (PMAFs) were detected between 06:30 and 07:00 UT on December 16, 1998, by the meridian scanning photometer and the all-sky camera at Ny Ålesund, Svalbard. Simultaneous SuperDARN HF radar measurements permitted the study of the associated ionospheric velocity pattern. A good general agreement is observed between the location and movement of velocity enhancements (flow channels) and the PMAFs. Clear signatures of equatorward flow were detected in the vicinity of PMAFs. This flow is believed to be the signature of a return flow outside the reconnected flux tube, as predicted by the Southwood model. The simulated signatures of this model reproduce globally the measured signatures, and differences with the experimental data can be explained by the simplifications of the model. Proposed schemes of the flow modification due to the presence of several flow channels and the modification of cusp and region 1 field-aligned currents at the time of sporadic reconnection events are shown to fit well with the observations.Key words: Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; plasma convection) - Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause; cusp and boundary layers)

The SuperDARN HF radars have been employed in the past to investigate the spectral characteristics of coherent backscatter from L-shell aligned features in the auroral E region. The present study employs all-sky camera observations of the aurora from Husafell, Iceland, and the two SuperDARN radars located on Iceland, Þykkvibær and Stokkseyri, to determine the optical signature of such backscatter features. It is shown that, especially during quiet geomagnetic conditions, the backscatter region is closely associated with east-west aligned diffuse auroral features, and that the two move in tandem with each other. This association between optical and radar aurora has repercussions for the instability mechanisms responsible for generating the E region irregularities from which radars scatter. This is discussed and compared with previous studies investigating the relationship between optical and VHF radar aurora. In addition, although it is known that E region backscatter is commonly observed by SuperDARN radars, the present study demonstrates for the first time that multiple radars can observe the same feature to extend over at least 3 h of magnetic local time, allowing precipitation features to be mapped over large portions of the auroral zone.Key words: Ionosphere (particle precipitation; plasma waves and instabilities)

During August 1998, the UK EISCAT special programme SP-UK-CSUB, which combines operation of both the mainland VHF and Svalbard UHF incoherent scatter radars, was run for several hours around magnetic midnight on four consecutive days. The CUTLASS Finland HF coherent scatter radar was, at these times, operating in a discretionary mode, sounding on all 16 beams, one at high-time resolution. This study presents a comparison of the velocities measured by coherent and incoherent techniques during the SP-UK-CSUB experiments. Agreement, particularly between the ion velocities measured by the EISCAT Svalbard radar and irregularity drift measurements by the Finland radar, is remarkable, thereby validating the scientific integrity of both data sets. This work highlights the substantive contribution to our understanding of the solar-terrestrial environment which can be made by use in concert of incoherent and HF coherent scatter radars.Key words: Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma convection; instruments and techniques)

We investigate the dayside auroral dynamics and ionospheric convection during an interval when the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) had predominantly a positive Bz component (northward IMF) but varying By. Polar UVI observations of the Northern Hemisphere auroral emission indicate the existence of a region of luminosity near local noon at latitudes poleward of the dayside auroral oval, which we interpret as the ionospheric footprint of a high-latitude reconnection site. The large field-of-view afforded by the satellite-borne imager allows an unprecedented determination of the dynamics of this region, which has not previously been possible with ground-based observations. The location of the emission in latitude and magnetic local time varies in response to changes in the orientation of the IMF; the cusp MLT and the IMF By component are especially well correlated, the emission being located in the pre- or post-noon sectors for By < 0 nT or By > 0 nT, respectively. Simultaneous ground-based observations of the ionospheric plasma drift are provided by the CUTLASS Finland HF coherent radar. For an interval of IMF By \approx 0 nT, these convection flow measurements suggest the presence of a clockwise-rotating lobe cell contained within the pre-noon dayside polar cap, with a flow reversal closely co-located with the high-latitude luminosity region. This pattern is largely consistent with recent theoretical predictions of the convection flow during northward IMF. We believe that this represents the first direct measurement of the convection flow at the imaged location of the footprint of the high-latitude reconnection site.Key words: Magnetospheric physics (auroral phenomena; magnetopause · cusp · and boundary layers; plasma convection)

Using the Equator-S spacecraft and SuperDARN HF radars an extensive survey of bursty reconnection at the magnetopause and associated flows in the polar ionosphere has been conducted. Flux transfer event (FTE) signatures were identified in the Equator-S magnetometer data during periods of magnetopause contact in January and February 1998. Assuming the effects of the FTEs propagate to the polar ionosphere as geomagnetic field-aligned-currents and associated Alfvén-waves, appropriate field mappings to the fields-of-view of SuperDARN radars were performed. The radars observed discrete ionospheric flow channel events (FCEs) of the type previously assumed to be related to pulse reconnection. Such FCEs were associated with \sim80% of the FTEs and the two signatures are shown to be statistically associated with greater than 99% confidence. Exemplary case studies highlight the nature of the ionospheric flows and their relation to the high latitude convection pattern, the association methodology, and the problems caused by instrument limitations.Key words: Ionosphere (polar ionosphere) · Magnetospheric physics (magnetosphere-ionosphere interaction; solar wind-magnetosphere interactions)

A preliminary analysis of Pc5, ULF wave activity observed with the IMAGE magnetometer array and the EISCAT UHF radar in the post midnight sector indicates that such waves can be caused by the modulation of the ionospheric conductivity as well as the wave electric field. An observed Pc5 pulsation is divided into three separate intervals based upon the EISCAT data. In the first and third, the Pc5 waves are observed only in the measured electron density between 90 and 112 km and maxima in the electron density at these altitudes are attributed to pulsed precipitation of electrons with energies up to 40 keV which result in the height integrated Hall conductivity being pulsed between 10 and 50 S. In the second interval, the Pc5 wave is observed in the F-region ion temperature, electron density and electron temperature but not in the D and E region electron densities. The analysis suggests that the wave during this interval is a coupled Alfven and compressional mode.Key words: Ionosphere (electric fields and currents) - Magnetospheric physics (magnetosphere-ionosphere interaction; MHD waves and instabilities)

On 7 December 1992, a moderate substorm was observed by a variety of satellites and ground-based instruments. Ionospheric flows were monitored near dusk by the Goose Bay HF radar and near midnight by the EISCAT radar. The observed flows are compared here with magnetometer observations by the IMAGE array in Scandinavia and the two Greenland chains, the auroral distribution observed by Freja and the substorm cycle observations by the SABRE radar, the SAMNET magnetometer array and LANL geosynchronous satellites. Data from Galileo Earth-encounter II are used to estimate the IMF Bz component. The data presented show that the substorm onset electrojet at midnight was confined to closed field lines equatorward of the pre-existing convection reversal boundaries observed in the dusk and midnight regions. No evidence of substantial closure of open flux was detected following this substorm onset. Indeed the convection reversal boundary on the duskside continued to expand equatorward after onset due to the continued presence of strong southward IMF, such that growth and expansion phase features were simultaneously present. Clear indications of closure of open flux were not observed until a subsequent substorm intensification 25 min after the initial onset. After this time, the substorm auroral bulge in the nightside hours propagated well poleward of the pre-existing convection reversal boundary, and strong flow perturbations were observed by the Goose Bay radar, indicative of flows driven by reconnection in the tail.Key words. Ionosphere (auroral ionosphere; plasma convection) · Magnetospheric physics (storms and substorms)

Three SuperDARN coherent HF radars are employed to investigate the excitation of convection in the dayside high-latitude ionosphere in response to transient reconnection occurring in the cusp region. This study demonstrates the existence of transient antisunward-propagating backscatter features at the expected location of the ionospheric footprint of the cusp region, which have a repetition rate near 10 min. These are interpreted as the ionospheric signature of flux transfer events. Moreover, transient sunward-propagating regions of backscatter are observed in the convection return flow regions of both the pre- and post-noon sectors. These patches are observed to propagate towards the noon sector from at least as far around the auroral zone as 07 MLT in the pre-noon sector and 17 MLT in the post-noon sector, travelling with a velocity of approximately 1.5 to 2 km s-1. These return flow patches have a repetition rate similar to that of the transient features observed at local noon. While providing supporting evidence for the impulsive nature of convection flow, the observation of sunward-propagating features in the return flow region is not consistent with current conceptual models of the excitation of convection.Key words. Ionosphere (plasma convection) · Magnetospheric physics (magnetopause · cusp · and boundary layers; magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions)

The CUTLASS Finland radar, which comprises an integral part of the SuperDARN system of HF coherent radars, provides near continuous observations of high-latitude plasma irregularities within a field-of-view which extends over some four million square kilometres. Within the Finland radar field-of-view lie both the EISCAT mainland and EISCAT Svalbard incoherent scatter radar facilities. Since the CUTLASS Finland radar commenced operation, in February 1995, the mainland EISCAT UHF radar has been run in common programme 1 and 2 modes for a total duration exceeding 1000 h. Simultaneous and spatially coincident returns from these two radars over this period provide the basis for a comparison of irregularity drift velocity and F-region ion velocity. Initial comparison is limited to velocities from four intervals of simultaneous radar returns; intervals are selected such that they exhibit a variety of velocity signatures including that characteristic of the convection reversal and a rapidly fluctuating velocity feature. Subsequent comparison is on a statistical basis. The velocities measured by the two systems demonstrate reasonable correspondence over the velocity regime encountered during the simultaneous occurrence of coherent and incoherent scatter; differences between the EISCAT UHF measurements of F-region ion drift and the irregularity drift velocities from the Finland radar are explained in terms of a number of contributing factors including contamination of the latter by E-region echoes, a factor which is investigated further, and the potentially deleterious effect of discrepant volume and time sampling intervals.Key words. Ionosphere (ionospheric irregularities; plasma convection)