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  • First Observations of Severe Scintillation Over Low‐to‐Mid Latitudes Driven by Quiet‐Time Extreme Equatorial Plasma Bubbles: Conjugate Measurements Enabled by Citizen Science Initiatives
Title: First Observations of Severe Scintillation Over Low‐to‐Mid Latitudes Driven by Quiet‐Time Extreme Equatorial Plasma Bubbles: Conjugate Measurements Enabled by Citizen Science Initiatives
Abstract Low‐cost instrumentation combined with volunteering and citizen science educational initiatives allowed the deployment of L‐band scintillation monitors to remote sense areas that are geomagnetically conjugated and located at low‐to‐mid latitudes in the American sector (Quebradillas in Puerto Rico and Santa Maria in Brazil). On 10 and 11 October, 2023, both monitors detected severe scintillations, some reaching dip latitudes beyond 26°N. The observations show conjugacy in the spatio‐temporal evolution of the scintillation‐causing irregularities. With the aid of collocated all‐sky airglow imager observations, it was shown that the observed scintillation event was caused by extreme equatorial plasma bubbles (EPBs) reaching geomagnetic apex altitudes exceeding 2,200 km. The observations suggest that geomagnetic conjugate large‐scale structures produced conditions for the development of intermediate scale (few 100 s of meters) in both hemispheres, leading to scintillation at conjugate locations. Finally, unlike previous reports, it is shown that the extreme EPBs‐driven scintillation reported here developed under geomagnetically quiet conditions.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2122639 1916055 2152365
PAR ID:
10521476
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
AGU - Wiley
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics
Volume:
129
Issue:
6
ISSN:
2169-9380
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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