Abstract Valley region irregularities (VRIs) have been previously investigated using radar, ionosonde, and rocket‐borne in situ observations. In this paper, based on a joint observational experiment by lidar and radars performed in Hainan, China, we report a case of low‐latitude VRIs generated in association with uplifted metallic ions for the first time, which was observed during the 2025 New Year magnetic storm. The uplifted ions accumulated at valley region altitudes ∼150 km where VRIs were generated. It is suggested that the metallic ion uplifting could be driven by storm‐time eastward penetration electric fields and/or polarization electric fields associated with equatorial plasma bubbles. It is hypothesized that the observed ion layer was formed by ion convergence produced by the joint action of electric field and meridional neutral wind and became unstable by the gradient drift instability generating the VRIs.
Observations from the Little Bunker
Last updated: December 19, 2025 10:10 PM
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427.2 ppm
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