Abstract :
Though the climatology of the system is basically understood the modeling of the low altitude region of the low latitude ionosphere still challenges our ability to handle this matter. The underlying causes of weather phenomena (sporadic E layers, intermediate layers, and equatorial electrojet) can be traced to the propagation of tides and gravity waves from the lower atmosphere. Thus, it is time to investigate the possibility for specifying conditions and eventually forecast models for predicting the occurrence, duration and intensity of these phenomena. This work provides a brief and formal discussion on the low-altitude space weather issues related with the low latitude ionosphere, as well as the problems associated with conforming the necessary conditions for their occurrence with the standard systematics for empirical modeling. In particular it is shown that the composition, morphology and dynamics are well determined though the driving mechanisms and chemistry of irregular layers remains as intriguing as ever.
