Equatorial ionospheric irregularities have a significant detrimental impact on a variety of space application systems in navigation and communication areas that utilize satellites, especially the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) network. The development of these irregularities in the nighttime ionosphere is controlled primarily by ionospheric electric fields and instabilities. The effect of magnetic disturbance on these electric fields and on the irregularities is investigated here.

This work presents an analysis of the scintillation onset over the southern Brazil based on data from two solar maximum periods and simulation of the ionospheric conditions before the scintillation onset. The results shows some patterns which may help to prevent several satellite-based technological applications suffering disruptions due to scintillation issues.

This paper analyzes the influence of the recent deep and prolonged solar minimum on the daytime zonal and vertical plasma drift velocities during quiet time over Jicamarca, Peru. Our results show that an anomalously low zonal wind was mainly responsible for the observed anomalous behavior in the zonal drift followed by a decrease in the E-region conductivity and the dynamo electric field during 2008.

In this work the response of the Brazilian equatorial ionosphere is studied during three HILDCAA events that occurred in the year of 2006 using the digisonde data. Geomagnetic indices and interplanetary parameters were used to calculate a cross-correlation coefficient between the E_y and the hmF2. The results showed that the pumping action of particle precipitation into the auroral zone has moderately modified the equatorial hmF2, being more sensitive during PRE time.

Periodic waves have been observed over São João do Cariri during almost one solar cycle. Similarities between the characteristics of these events with observations at other places around the world were noted, primarily the spectral parameters. Most observed waves have appeared during magnetically quiet nights, and the occurrence of those waves followed the solar activity. Due to their characteristics, most of them must have had different generation mechanisms from the Perkins instability.