Imaging HF-induced large-scale irregularities above HAARP

The University of Massachusetts-Lowell digisonde is used with the HAARP high-frequency (HF), ionospheric modification facility to obtain radio images of artificially-produced, large-scale, geomagnetic field-aligned irregularities. F region irregularities generated with the HAARP beam pointed in the vertical and geomagnetic field-aligned directions are examined in a smooth background plasma. It is found that limited large-scale irregularity production takes place with vertical transmissions, whereas there is a dramatic increase in the number of source irregularities with the beam pointed parallel to the geomagnetic field. Strong irregularity production appears to be confined to within similar to 5 degrees of the geomagnetic zenith and does not fill the volume occupied by the HF beam. A similar effect is observed in optical images of artificial airglow.