极区电离层等离子体对流是反映太阳风-磁层-电离层耦合的一个重要现象。大尺度的极区电离层对流由太阳风和地球磁场相互作用产生的晨昏电场映射到极区电离层引起。极区电离层对流对太阳风磁层相互作用、磁层边界层各种动力学过程等的响应明显，目前还没有一个表征极区电离层对流的空间天气指数体系。本项目利用SuperDRAN雷达网的极区电离层全域对流观测和中山站及黄河站上已有的先进观测设备（极光成像系统、地磁链、数字式电离层测高仪（DPS-4）、成像式宇宙噪声接收机等）的共轭观测数据，结合Cluster/THEMIS/DMSP等卫星的协同观测，对各种行星际磁场和太阳风参数条件下的极区电离层等离子体对流展开深入研究，进一步探讨极区等离子体对流对磁层顶边界层和磁尾各类动力学过程的响应及其在对流特征参数上的表现，探索极区电离层对流的指标体系，为近地空间环境预报提供物理依据。

The plasma convection in the polar ionosphere, due to the potential difference caused by the interaction between solar wind and earth's magnetic field and mapped from magnetosphere into polar ionosphere along magnetic field lines, plays an important role in energy coupling among solar wind-magnetosphere–ionosphere. Although polar ionospheric convection responds obviously to solar wind-magnetosphere interactions and different kinds of magnetospheric dynamics, closely related to space weather, there is no space weather index for the polar ionosphere convection. Using SuperDRAN global polar ionospheric convection observations, conjugate aurora and ionosphere observations at Zhongshan Station, Antarctica and Yellow River station in the Arctic with Aurora All Sky CCD Imaging System, Magnetometers, Digisonde and Imaging Riometers, and in-situ observations with Cluster/THEMIS/ DMSP, this program will concentrate on polar ionospheric convection characteristics and performance in different IMF and solar wind conditions, and their responses to the dynamics in magnetopause and magnetotail. We will try to establish a space weather index system for polar ionospheric convection, to provide a tool for geo-space weather prediction.