SuperDARN is a network of HF radars (8-20 MHz) used to study the convection in the Earth's ionosphere at altitudes between 90 and 400 km and at magnetic latitudes between 60° and 90° (each radar has 16 azimuthal beams and 75 ranges).

SuperDARN developed in the last 12 years.

and 7 in the southern hemisphere.

At present, 10 radars operate in the northern hemisphere

Temporal Response of Ionospheric Convection to Solar Wind Transitions

SuperDARN Science highlights.

Imaging High-Latitude Ionospheric Convection

Determination of Global Poynting Flux and Joule Heating

Global Detection of Atmospheric Gravity Waves and Planetary Waves

Measurement of Cross-Polar-Cap Potential Drop

Magnetic Reconnection Science

Flow Transients and Variability

Conjugate Studies of Ionospheric and Magnetospheric Convection

Ionospheric Plasma Instabilities

ULF Pulsations

Magnetic Conjugacy

Bz < 0

Bz > 0

Magnetic reconnection in the magnetosphere.

12 MLT

Imaging High-Latitude Ionospheric Convection

SphericalharmonicsJHUAPLmodelfor CPCpotential

12 MLT

• Counter-rotating convection cells in the dayside high-latitude polar cap [From Huang et al., 2000].

• These patterns had been postulated to occur under northward IMF conditions.

• SuperDARN was the first instrument network to confirm their existence.

Imaging High-Latitude Ionospheric Convection

Near midnight MLT. EquinoxEquatorward moving bands of scatterLow spectral width well defined speeds.Coincident in UT and magnetic latitude.

Several cases found.Origin unknown.

SuperDARN potential maps

Istituto di Fisica dello Spazio Interplanetario, INAF, Roma.

Istituto di Fisica dello Spazio Interplanetario, INAF, Roma.

SuperDARN potential maps

Istituto di Fisica dello Spazio Interplanetario, INAF, Roma.

SuperDARN potential maps

SuperDARN potential mapshttp://superdarn.jhuapl.edu/