Analysis of in situ measurements of electron, ion and neutral temperatures in the lower thermosphere–ionosphere

Abstract. Simultaneous knowledge of the temperatures of electrons, ions and neutrals is key to the understanding and quantification of energy transfer processes in planetary atmospheres. However, whereas electron and ion temperature measurements are routinely obtained from ground-based incoherent scatter radars, simultaneous measurements of electron, ion and neutral temperature measurements can only be made in situ. For the Earth's lower thermosphere–ionosphere, the only available comprehensive in situ dataset of electron, ion and neutral temperatures to date is that of the Atmosphere Explorers C, D and E and the Dynamics Explorer 2 missions. In this study we first perform a cross-comparison of all co-temporal and co-spatial measurements between in situ electron and ion temperature measurements from the above in situ spacecraft missions with corresponding measurements from the Arecibo, Millstone Hill and Saint-Santin incoherent scatter radars, during times of overflights of these spacecraft over the radar fields of view. This expands upon a previous study that only considered data from the Atmosphere Explorer C. The results indicate good agreement between satellite and ground-based radar measurements. Subsequently, out of the above datasets, all instances where ion temperatures appear to be lower than neutral temperatures are identified and are studied statistically. Whereas current understanding indicates that ion temperatures are generally expected to be higher than neutral temperatures in the lower thermosphere–ionosphere, a non-negligible number of events is found where this does not hold true. The distribution of all such cases in altitude, latitude and longitude is presented and discussed. Potential causes leading to neutral temperatures being higher than ion temperatures are outlined, including both instrumental effects or measurement errors and physical causes. Whereas a conclusive case cannot be made based on the present analysis, it is speculated from the results presented herein that not all cases can be attributed to instrument effects or measurement errors. This can have significant implications for the current understanding that the energy of the ions is expected to be higher than that of the neutrals and points to the need for additional simultaneous in situ measurements in the lower thermosphere–ionosphere (LTI).