Metallic ion transport associated with midlatitude intermediate layer development

Although intermediate layers are frequently observed by the Arecibo Incoherent Radar Observatory and by ionosondes around the world, many questions still remain regarding their formation, structure, and composition. In this paper, we explore the effect of metallic ions, specifically Fe + , on intermediate layer development and evolution. Several studies have demonstrated that layers can form from either molecular or metallic ions. This paper extends these earlier studies by quantifying the effect of metallic ions on intermediate layer morphology. We show that the efficiency of metallic ion transport depends significantly on the amplitude and wavelength of the imposed horizontal wind field. Specifically, larger amplitudes and longer wavelengths result in increased ion transport in the direction of the propagating neutral wind field.