Coordinated study of equatorial scintillation and in situ and radar observations of nighttime F region irregularities

A coordinated set of Atmospheric Explorer E (AE-E) satellite in situ, VHF radar backscatter, and scintillation measurements performed during 1977 over a common ionospheric volume is used to study the relationship between the plasma depletions or bubbles, the extended 3-m irregularity structures known as plumes, and bursts of scintillation activity or patches in the nighttime equatorial F region. The implications of the observed spatial structures and the level of ambient concentration on the generation of 3-m irregularities and scintillation modeling are discussed.