Plasma Bubbles and Their Extension to Midlatitudes

Plasma bubbles are pockets of significant and abrupt depletions in background plasma variations. These depletions are ubiquitous in the nighttime F-region and topside ionosphere at equatorial and low latitudes. There are sometimes ionospheric irregularities of various scales within the bubbles, which may cause ionospheric scintillation. The scintillation can have substantial impact on radio signals traversing through the ionosphere, with signal cycle slips in global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) being an example of such impact. General occurrence features, plasma density structures, and generation mechanisms of plasma bubbles are known, particularly during quiet conditions. However, when there is a significant increase in the input of solar wind energy to the magnetosphere and ionosphere during geomagnetic storms, the features of plasma bubbles may change. For example, there are several reported cases of plasma bubbles extending to midlatitude regions reaching. This seminar will give an overview of equatorial plasma bubbles and present case studies of their extension to midlatitude regions.