Likelihood of gradient drift instability development during the August 21, 2017 solar eclipse

The effect of the August 21, 2017 solar eclipse on the ionosphere is modeled using Sami3 is Also a Model of the Ionosphere (SAMI3). Due to the density gradient geometry that arises from the solar eclipse response, the gradient drift instability (GDI) is hypothesized to develop and grow. The GDI grow...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inRadiation effects and defects in solids Vol. 175; no. 1-2; pp. 136 - 140
Main Authors Rathod, Chirag, Kordella, Lee, Scales, Wayne, Earle, Greg, Srinivasan, Bhuvana
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Abingdon Taylor & Francis 02.01.2020
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Drift
fluid
Growth rate
Ionosphere
Plasma modeling
Response time
solar eclipse
Solar eclipses
space science
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Summary:The effect of the August 21, 2017 solar eclipse on the ionosphere is modeled using Sami3 is Also a Model of the Ionosphere (SAMI3). Due to the density gradient geometry that arises from the solar eclipse response, the gradient drift instability (GDI) is hypothesized to develop and grow. The GDI growth rate is calculated using the model data and setting wavevector direction to maximize growth. The results show that the GDI growth is an order of magnitude lower than the ionospheric eclipse response time. Therefore, the ionosphere returns to generally normal conditions before the GDI can grow. It is concluded that the GDI is not expected to grow during a solar eclipse.
ISSN:1042-0150
1029-4953
DOI:10.1080/10420150.2020.1718138