Concentration and drift velocity of ionospheric plasma over the Far Eastern region of earthquakes

• download

The local irregularities of ionospheric plasma, which occur during earthquakes, are generally connected with
the change of atmospheric conductivity and the penetration of seismic electric field to the altitude of the iono-
sphere. The instruments on board the Atmosphere Explorer-C satellite allow us to measure in situ concentration,
temperature and the transversal component of plasma drift velocity. The comparison of the measurement data,
received on different orbits of the satellite over the seismically active region, shows the modification of the profile
of plasma concentration and the appearance of disturbed drift component with the values up to 150 m/s, it
confirms the existence of additional electric field in the ionosphere.