SPRG Seminars
April 8, 2014:
"An All-Sky-Imager Network for Studies of Ionospheric Processes from Sub-Auroral to Equatorial Latitudes"
Michael Mendillo, Astronomy Department, Boston University
All-Sky-Imagers (ASIs) provide broad spatial coverage of emissions generated in the upper atmosphere over altitudes ranging from ~90 km to ~400 km. These provide a science yield related to in-situ processes within the mesosphere, thermosphere and ionosphere, as well as evidence of strong coupling from above (magnetospheric) and below (meteorological). In addition to such self-contained science topics, an ASI provides large-scale context (~1 million square kilometers) for multi-diagnostic studies involving radars, GPS networks and satellite-borne instruments. The Center for Space Physics at Boston University in the process of establishing a network of thirteen ASIs, with ten of the systems currently in operation. The core network is within the North-South American longitude sector with observing sites selected to cover geomagnetic conjugate points ranging from low to sub-auroral latitudes (L ~ 3). Additional ASI sites are in the western US, at European-African longitudes, and in New Zealand.
In this seminar, two sets of initial results will be presented to illustrate ASIs dual role of independent optical aeronomy and context for multi-diagnostic systems: (1) Observations on 26-27 September 2011 will illustrate magnetospheric-ionospheric coupling of diffuse aurora and stable auroral red (SAR) arcs from three sites widely space in longitude; (2) Observations on 1 June 2013 portray an unusual case of auroral and equatorial processes intruding upon the mid-latitude ionosphere to the point of merging above a single site.