Statistical analysis of Low latitude Spread F at the American, Atlantic and Pacific sectors using digisonde observations

Abstract

Abstract Digisonde data from three different longitude sectors from Jicamarca (12°S, 76.8°W, -2.5° declination angle) from 2001–2016, Ascension Island (7.9°S, 14.4°W, -15.09° declination angle) from 2000–2014, Kwajalein (8.71°N, 167.7°E, 7.5° declination angle) from 2004–2012, has been processed and analyzed to determine statistical studies of equatorial spread F, a diagnostic of irregular plasma structure in the ionosphere. A new method of spread F detection for low latitude region is used to determine solar and seasonal variation over these three sites. An algorithm has been developed to detect the foF2 and hmF2 values from an ionogram and this has been validated using manually scaled ionograms, as well as comparisons to the SAMI2 and IRI models.