Mapping the Fine Structure of the Auroral Electrojet via VLF Generation at HAARP

Historically, the auroral electrojet has been mapped using chains of flux gate magnetometers. This method has been useful for monitoring auroral activity; however, the resulting current density maps have low spatial resolution, on the order of, at best, single degrees (110 km) latitudinally. In this work we attempt to create a new method to spatially map relative current densities of the lower D region by performing VLF wave generation at the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) heating facility in a cyclic spatial pattern of approximately 20km diameter spots. The findings and implications of this mapping technique are discussed along with plans for future work.