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Observations Of The Vertical Ion Drift In The Equatorial Ionosphere During The Solar Minimum Period Of 2009, R. A. Stoneback, R. A. Heelis, A. G. Burrell, W. R. Coley, Bela G. Fejer, E. Pacheco

Bela G. Fejer

[1] The extended solar minimum conditions in 2008 and 2009 presented an opportunity to investigate the ionosphere at lower solar activity levels than previously observed. The Coupled Ion Neutral Dynamics Investigation (CINDI) Ion Velocity Meter (IVM) instrument onboard the Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System is used to construct the median meridional (vertical) ion drifts, ion densities, and O+ concentrations during periods of low geomagnetic activity for four characteristic seasons each year spanning late 2008 to 2010. The presence of a large semidiurnal component in the ion drift variation at the equator produced significant differences from typical ionospheric conditions. Instead of upward …