HF Heating Effects as Seen From Below and Above: First Results of Joint SURA–Ionosfera-M Experiment

Geophysical Research Letters. 2026. Vol. 53. No. 16. Article e2026GL123503.

Chernyshov A., Padokhin A. M., Grach S. M., Kogogin D. A., Shindin A. V., Pulinets S. A., Nasyrov I. A., Beletsky A. B., Tkachev I. D., Legostaeva J. K., Chugunin D. V., Evdokimova M. A., Kurbatov G. A., Tsybulya K. G., Solin A. E., Shchennikov A. V., Tareeva E. V., Emelyanov V. V., Mogilevsky M. M.

This paper presents the first results of a coordinated experiment on the ionospheric plasma response to high-frequency (HF) overdense heating, conducted using the SURA heating facility and the Ionosfera-M satellite. The experiment combined ground-based observations with in situ satellite measurements, enabling a comprehensive study of artificial ionospheric disturbances. During the experiment, the SURA facility transmitted HF waves into the ionosphere toward the magnetic zenith, while Ionosfera-M and ground-based instruments measured various ionospheric plasma characteristics in the modified region. The penetration of the pump wave energy up to the satellite height was observed as well as some broadening of VLF noise spectrum and signatures similar to the main ionospheric trough in the HF-disturbed region. The data analysis revealed a coincidence of the regions of artificial airglow generation and electron density depletion near the magnetic zenith. The results demonstrate an efficiency of combining ground-based and satellite studies of the HF-pump induced phenomena.

Keywords: ionosphere, ионосфера, Active experiments, satellite data, спутниковые данные, artificial airglow, активный эксперимент, искусственное оптическое свечение