Evidence of mutual induction between the ionosphere and the earth at equatorial latitudes

DUHAU, S.; OSELLA, A.,

JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH

AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION

Año: 1985 vol. 90 p. 4434 - 4438

0148-0227

The mutual induction between theionosphere and the earth has been suggested asone of the possible causes of the longitudinalinhomogeneities in the phase velocity of type IIirregularities in the equatorial electrojet. Fromthe analysis of the geomagnetic daily variationsat equatorial latitudes in Peru, Nigeria, and central Africa, latitudinal profiles of the integratedturrent density and clear evidence of latitudinaldiscontinuities in the distribution of theearth conductivity were found in previous work,In the present paper a very high correlation isfound between tectonic features and inhomogeneitiesboth in the phase velocity and in the integratedcurrent density. This shows that ionosphericinhomogeneities are related to specificlateral discontinuities in the conductivity ofthe upper layers of the earth. This result givesenough insight into that effect to allow its inclusionin future theoretical models.