In-Situ Measurementes of Wave Electric Firelds in the Equatorial Electrojet
Abstract
Electric field wave measurements have been performed on two sounding rockets in the equatorial ionosphere. During a daytime flight from Chilca, Peru, intense elecrostatic waves were detected on the upward directec electron density gradient. Duing a nighttime flight from Kwajalein Atoll, similar waves were detected on a downward directed gradien. These results are in agreement with a gradient drift instability explanation of the generation of the waves. The wave amplitudes were as high as 5 mV/m implying pertubation drifts comparable to the driving drift velocities. Power spectra from the turbulent region show a peak at long wavelengths, followed by a nearly flat spectral region before breaking into a power law form with hegative index of 3.6-3.7 for λ