Multi-instrument study of various aspects of equatorialionospheric irregularities over American and African sectors

This thesis is devoted to the study of ionospheric irregularities observed over Brazil and Africa using different instruments and observational techniques. First, the occurrence of ionospheric irregularities like plasma bubbles, blobs, and Spread-F (typical and atypical have been investigated using all-sky imaging systems and ionosondes located at Araguatins, Jataí, and São José dos Campos. Afterward, GPS-TEC data from 33 receiver stations located in different parts of Brazil and Africa were used in the investigation of ROT (rate of TEC change) phase fluctuations during the Antarctic Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW). Electron density measurements from the Swarm constellation have also been employed to aid in the analysis and discussion of some of the results obtained from ionosonde and ASI. The thesis focuses on two main studies. One study was dedicated to exploring the observation of the simultaneous occurrence of ionospheric plasma bubbles and blobs using an all-sky imaging system and the observation of atypical Spread-F on ionograms. Based on these observations, a novel methodology is proposed for the observation and studies of ionospheric plasma blobs using ionosondes. The proposed methodology employed a colocated all-sky imager and ionosonde at Araguatins to observe simultaneously occurring plasma bubbles and blobs and then the corresponding ionograms were analyzed. The characteristics of the echoes on the ionograms were compared with the observations from the OI 630 nm nightglow images from the all-sky imager for when there were no irregularities and when bubbles and/or blobs were present. The results showed that in the presence of bubbles and blobs, Spread-Fs with high-frequency echoes were drawn on the ionograms at almost the same time as the images were taken. The results also showed that the generation of plasma blobs could be influenced by the development of bubbles and that the equatorial ionization anomaly may play a major role in their development. The other focus of the thesis is the study of the effects of the 2019 minor Antarctic SSW event on the generation/suppression of ionospheric irregularities. The critical frequency obtained from the three ionosonde stations at Araguatins, Jataí, and São José dos Campos was used to monitor the ionospheric irregularities during the different phases of the SSW event. Spread-F (Brazil) and ROT phase fluctuations (Brazil, Africa) occurrence at different latitudes during different phases of the event were analyzed. Irregularity occurrence from a similar period in 2018 when no SSW event was recorded in the Antarctic region was also analyzed. The results showed a general decrease in occurrence rates during the peak phase of the event compared to the other phases in 2019. The results also showed a decrease in occurrence rate from the peak phase in 2018 (no SSW) to the peak phase in 2019 (SSW).