On developing a new ionospheric plasma index for Brazilian equatorial F region irregularities

Resende, Laysa Cristina Araujo; Denardini, Clezio Marcos; Picanço, Giorgio Arlan Silva; Moro, Juliano; Barros, Diego; Figueiredo, Cosme Alexandre Oliveira Barros; Silva, Régia Pereira

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-37-807-2019

Articles | Volume 37, issue 5

https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-37-807-2019

© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Special issue:

7th Brazilian meeting on space geophysics and aeronomy

https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-37-807-2019

© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 37, issue 5

Regular paper

|

17 Sep 2019

Regular paper |

| 17 Sep 2019

On developing a new ionospheric plasma index for Brazilian equatorial F region irregularities

Laysa Cristina Araujo Resende, Clezio Marcos Denardini, Giorgio Arlan Silva Picanço, Juliano Moro, Diego Barros, Cosme Alexandre Oliveira Barros Figueiredo, and Régia Pereira Silva

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Final revised paper (published on 17 Sep 2019)
Preprint (discussion started on 01 Apr 2019)

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

AC: Author comment | RC: Referee comment | SC: Short comment | EC: Editor comment

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EC1: 'Quick comments', Igo Paulino, 01 Apr 2019
- RC1: 'review report', Anonymous Referee #1, 01 Apr 2019
  - AC2: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Referee 1', Laysa Resende, 18 Apr 2019
    - EC2: 'Improve the revision version', Igo Paulino, 08 May 2019
      - AC3: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Editor', Laysa Resende, 29 May 2019
- AC1: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Editor', Laysa Resende, 18 Apr 2019
RC2: 'comments', Anonymous Referee #2, 26 Apr 2019
- EC3: 'Discussion on solar cycle effects', Igo Paulino, 08 May 2019
  - AC5: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Editor', Laysa Resende, 29 May 2019
  - AC7: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Editor -Paper', Laysa Resende, 29 May 2019
- AC4: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Referee 2', Laysa Resende, 29 May 2019
- AC6: 'Responses to the Comment and/or Suggestions from Referee 2 - Paper', Laysa Resende, 29 May 2019

Peer-review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision

ED: Publish subject to revisions (further review by editor and referees) (31 May 2019) by Igo Paulino

AR by Laysa Resende on behalf of the Authors (01 Jul 2019) Author's response Manuscript

ED: Referee Nomination & Report Request started (02 Jul 2019) by Igo Paulino

RR by Anonymous Referee #1 (31 Jul 2019)

Suggestions for revision or reasons for rejection

The manuscript has been revised. However, the following issues need to be revised before its publication.

-- The authors have investigated time delay of the peak of the upward velocity of the F layer movement and onset of the spread F. This reviewer believes that it is worth studying, but the authors need to mention the followings. The observations carried out in this study is the observation just above the ionosonde. By the only one point observation, it is impossible to distinguish between temporal and spatial variations of the spread F or plasma bubble. In most cases, plasma bubbles occur around sunset terminator and move eastward at the same velocity as the ambient plasma in the ionosphere. By the observation at a single point, it is impossible to identify where and when the plasma bubble is generated. For an example, we consider the case that spread F is observed by an ionosonde 1 hour after the upward velocity of the F layer movement reaches a peak. Plasma bubble may be generated above the ionosonde 1 hour after the peak of the upward velocity of the F layer. The other possibility that the plasma bubble is generated at west of the ionosonde site, moves eastward, and reaches the ionosonde site 1 hour after the peak of the upward velocity of the F layer. Satellite trace in the ionogram arises from radio wave reflection from the oblique direction, indicating plasma bubble does not exist just above the ionosonde, but apart from the ionosonde.

-- P. 11, l. 1: "U^P" is not zonal wind. It is the Pedersen conductivity-weighted neutral wind perpendicular to the magnetic field in the magnetic meridian plane.

-- P. 14, ll. 15-17, "In addition, the formation of these irregularities ...": It is better to change to "the post-midnight plasma bubbles could be caused by atmospheric gravity wave seeding of the Rayleigh-Taylor instability and/or increase in growth rate of the Rayleigh-Taylor instability due to the F-layer uplift, ."

-- P. 14, ll. 17-18, "In both cases, there is a decrease...":
This explanation of applicable to only latter case, that is the increase in growth rate of the Rayleigh-Taylor instability due to the F-layer uplift. Gravity wave does affect the ion-neutral collision frequency. On the other hand, when the F-layer is uplifted, the F layer exists at higher altitude, where the ion-neutral collision frequency is low.

Minor comments
-- P. 14, l. 16, "an abrupt uplift": "abrupt" is not needed. Only "uplift of the F layer" is

-- P. 14, l. 17, "In both cases, ...": When the F layer is uplifted

-- P. 16, l. 8: what is "um"?
-- P. 17, l. 13: "shown" --> "have shown"
-- It is better to use "December solstice" and "June solstice instead of "summer" and "winter" because plasma bubbles occur around equator and exist simultaneously in both northern and southern hemispheres.
-- Reference list: Change the order of the references to "Barros et al., 2018", "Basu et al. 1996", and "Batista et al. 1986 and 1996".

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RR by Anonymous Referee #2 (01 Aug 2019)

ED: Publish subject to minor revisions (review by editor) (02 Aug 2019) by Igo Paulino

AR by Laysa Resende on behalf of the Authors (14 Aug 2019) Author's response Manuscript

ED: Publish as is (15 Aug 2019) by Igo Paulino

AR by Laysa Resende on behalf of the Authors (16 Aug 2019) Manuscript

Short summary

The Brazilian Space Weather Study and Monitoring Program (Embrace) has been developing different indexes that describe ionospheric effects in the Brazilian sector. The main purpose of this work was to produce a new ionospheric scale based on the analysis of the ionospheric plasma drift velocity. We analyzed 7 years of data in order to construct a standardized scale. The results of this new index allow us to evaluate the impacts of ionospheric phenomena in the space weather environment.