During a powerful geomagnetic storm on May 11, scientists from Kyushu University discovered an impressive atmospheric phenomenon that had long gone unnoticed by them. We are talking about sporadic E layers – narrow, metal-laden regions in the Earth’s ionosphere that have unexpectedly shown high activity. During the last phase of storm recovery, they intensified and “traveled” from the poles to the equator. A study published in Geophysical Research Letters has shown for the first time the global dynamics of these mysterious phenomena, which may help predict radio communication outages.
What happens at an altitude of 100 kilometers?
Sporadic E layers form at an altitude of 90-120 km above the Earth. They consist of ionized metallic particles of iron or sodium that are trapped there from meteorite dust particles. The accumulation of these dust particles generates the so-called E clouds. These clouds are extremely dense but thin – their thickness rarely exceeds 1-5 km. For a long time, their behavior during solar storms remained a mystery, as scientific attention focused on the higher F layer (150-500 km), where the main ionization occurs.
During the post-storm recovery phase, when the Earth’s magnetosphere returns to normal, sporadic E layers began to form intensively over Southeast Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Ocean. Even more surprising was their distribution: first clouds appeared at the poles, and then, as under the influence of a giant wave, moved to the equator. This behavior indicated that the activity was caused by disturbed neutral winds in the ionosphere triggered by the storm.
The scientists used data from 37 ionosondes and COSMIC-2 satellites for the analysis. This allowed a detailed real-time map of electromagnetic activity to be created.
Key to forecasting
Sporadic E layers can seriously disrupt radio communications, especially in the HF band used by aviation, maritime services, and amateur radio stations. Previously, their activity was difficult to predict due to lack of data. A new study suggests a model: if E clouds are enhanced during storm recovery and move from the poles, this can be used to develop more accurate forecasts.
“We now know where and when to look for E cloud bursts. This will help create warning systems for vulnerable technologies,” emphasizes Professor Huixin Liu from Kyushu University’s Faculty of Natural Sciences. The next step will be to analyze data from other solar storms to test the universality of the discovered patterns.
We previously explained how people were affected by magnetic storms.
According to scitechdaily.com
