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Detection of ionospheric anomalies during intense space weather over a low-latitude GNSS station

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Abstract

The operational availability of Global Navigation Satellite System is affected by large-scale irregularities of the ionosphere. The space weather events induce several intense irregularities and cause the non-linear distribution of ionospheric electron density. Monitoring of ionospheric responses due to extreme space weather events plays a key role in trans-ionospheric radio wave propagation. In the present analysis, a novel technique based on wavelet transform has been implemented for the analysis and detection of ionospheric anomalies during two intense space weather events that occurred in 2013. The investigations have been carried out using the ionospheric observable, Total Electron Content (TEC), derived from the Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver located at an Equatorial Ionisation Anomaly region, KL University, Guntur, India (Geographic Lat.16.37°N, Geographic Long. 80.37°E). The effects of geomagnetic storms (Sym-H ≤ −100 nT) on the perturbations of ionospheric TEC have been investigated. The algorithm of Continuous wavelet transform has been used to study and characterise the presence of ionospheric anomalies in the local time-scale plane. It can detect spatial and temporal details of ionospheric anomaly intensity during strong solar-terrestrial and geophysical events. It is observed that during the main phase of the geomagnetic storm that occurred during 17 March 2013, TEC enhanced by 7 TECU, while a suppression of 10 TECU in the GPS-TEC can be noticed during the main phase of the 29 June 2013 storm. The variation in the intensity of ionospheric TEC anomalies during storm time has been detected and compared to the intensity of the space weather events measured through solar and geomagnetic indices (F10.7, Sym-H, IMF Bz and IEF Ey).

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Acknowledgement

Dr. D. Venkata Ratnam would like to express his thanks to the Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi, India for funding this research through SR/FST/ESI-130/2013(C) FIST program. The work of Dr. D. Venkata Ratnam is supported through F. 301/2013(SAII)/RA201416GEANP5585. Authors are very much thankful to both the referees for giving valuable critical and precise comments/suggestions to improve the quality of this manuscript.

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  1. Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, KL University, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India

    G. Sivavaraprasad, D. Venkata Ratnam, R. Sree Padmaja, V. Sharvani, G. Saiteja, Y. S. R. Mounika & P. Babu Sree Harsha

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  1. G. Sivavaraprasad
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  2. D. Venkata Ratnam
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  3. R. Sree Padmaja
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  4. V. Sharvani
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Correspondence to D. Venkata Ratnam.

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Sivavaraprasad, G., Ratnam, D.V., Padmaja, R.S. et al. Detection of ionospheric anomalies during intense space weather over a low-latitude GNSS station. Acta Geod Geophys 52, 535–553 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40328-016-0190-4

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