One of the most important regions where the upper atmosphere is coupled to Earth's magnetosphere and the solar wind is the auroral zone. Inside auroral arcs, the primary transport of energy is in the form of accelerated charged particles. Numerical models are now able to make specific predictions about the time-evolution of the processes involved, but definitive observational tests of the models is still lacking. The project will utilize new capabilities from optical and radar instrumentation (Incoherent Scatter Radars) at three high-latitude facilities: the Sondrestrom facility (funded by NSF) and the EISCAT (European Incoherent Scatter radar) and ESR (EISCAT Svalbard Radar) facilities funded by a European/Japanese consortium. The project will develop a systematic observational framework for measuring local electrodynamic variability in the ionosphere and will then utilize that capability to compare observations on the time-dependent nature of magnetosphere-ionosphere electrodynamics with the various models. The project will involve international collaborations with European investigators associated with the EISCAT and ESR radars and will also have an educational component for a U.S. graduate student.
