HR: 09:15h
AN: SH11A-06 INVITED     [Abstracts]
TI: Observations of High Altitude Aurora With the Solar Mass Ejection Imager
AU: * Mizuno, D R
EM: don.mizuno@hanscom.af.mil
AF: Boston College, Institute for Scientific Research 140 Commonwealth Ave., Chestnut Hill, MA 02467-3862 United States
AB: The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) is a sensitive satellite-mounted heliospheric scanning instrument which assembles an approximately all-sky image in red-biased white light once per orbit. Its lines of sight pass obliquely through the topside ionosphere and magnetosphere. We present serendipitous observations of a visual phenomenon detected at high altitudes ($\geq$ 840 km) over the polar caps. The observations represent both transits of the satellite through a luminous medium and remote viewing of columnar structures possibly extending to heights of 2000 km or more. More than 1000 occurrences of these phenomena were recorded in the first year of operations, from February 2003 to February 2004. These observations are well correlated in brightness and frequency with periods of enhanced geomagnetic activity.
DE: 2407 Auroral ionosphere (2704)
DE: 2481 Topside ionosphere
DE: 2704 Auroral phenomena (2407)
DE: 2736 Magnetosphere/ionosphere interactions
DE: 0310 Airglow and aurora
SC: SPA-Solar and Heliospheric Physics [SH]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting