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Impact of geomagnetic storms on ionospheric TEC at high latitude stations: a comparative analysis of GPS observations and the IRI-2016 model

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Abstract

This work investigates the effects of two intense geomagnetic storms on Total Electron Content (TEC) in the ionosphere at high latitude stations situated in different hemispheres. Using ground-based GNSS receivers and the IRI-2016 model, the study analyzes TEC data collected from Kerguelen station (55.78°S, 133.44°E) in the southern hemisphere and Sodankyla station (63.83°N, 118.27°E) in the northern hemisphere. Substantial TEC fluctuations were observed during both geomagnetic storms, with more pronounced variations recorded over the Sodankyla station. Interestingly, during these storm events, nighttime TEC closely reached the daytime TEC levels, implying the inflow of additional plasma from higher latitudes in to the region. Through a comparative analysis using change in TEC (dTEC), it was found that Kerguelen station, situated farther from the geomagnetic polar region, exhibited more significant TEC alterations compared to the closer, Sodankyla station. While the observational measurement exhibited a positive ionospheric effect to the intense storms at both stations, IRI-2016 model showed negative responses during the initial, main, and recovery phases. Despite the significant correlation between IRI-TEC and GPS-TEC, error percentage and Root Mean Square Deviation (RMSD) plots represented that the IRI model struggled to accurately capture TEC fluctuations across various storm phases. Furthermore, the study examined the relative contributions of storm-induced changes in ionospheric O and N2 using the global map of Oxygen to Nitrogen ratio (O/N2) obtained from Thermosphere/Ionosphere Plasmasphere (CTIP) model, revealing a higher impact over Kerguelen station in comparison to Sodankyla station. Overall, this work helps to advance our understanding of geomagnetic storms impact on ionospheric TEC at high latitudes and highlights the current limitations in modeling approaches for accurately predicting ionospheric behavior during such dynamic events.

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Data Availability

The GPS-TEC and IRI-TEC data for this study obtained from UNAVCO (University of NAVSTAR Consortium) dual frequency GPS devices (http://www.unavco.org/data/gps-gnssdata/) and (https://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov/modelweb/models/iri2016), and the solar wind parameter data came from OmniWeb (https://omniweb.gsfc.nasa.gov/).

Code Availability

Not applicable.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge all data providers UNAVCO (University NAVSTAR Consortium) (http://www.unavco.org/data/gps-gnssdata/) for GPS-TEC data, Omni website (https://omniweb.gsfc.nasa.gov/) for Solar wind data (IMF Bz and IEF Ey) and Kp, Ap, and Dst-indices, and finally the IRI-TEC data website (https://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov/modelweb/models/iri2016). We also acknowledge the Coupled Thermosphere/Ionosphere Plasmasphere (CTIP) model for providing the ratio of oxygen to nitrogen molecules plot from (https://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov/models/ctip.php#description). The authors of cited journals and books are also acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Jimma University, Oromia, Ethiopia

    Chali Idosa Uga

  2. Department of Space Science, University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, AL, USA

    Sujan Prasad Gautam

  3. Ethiopian Space Science and Geospatial Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    Ephrem Beshir Seba

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  1. Chali Idosa Uga
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Author 1: Conceptualization, Data curation, Doing different plots used in the manuscript, Writting the original draft. Author 2: Doing different plots used in the manuscript, Writting and editing the manuscript, Reviewing, giving constructive comments. Author 3: Reviewing, giving constructive comments.

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Correspondence to Chali Idosa Uga.

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Idosa Uga, C., Prasad Gautam, S. & Beshir Seba, E. Impact of geomagnetic storms on ionospheric TEC at high latitude stations: a comparative analysis of GPS observations and the IRI-2016 model. Astrophys Space Sci 368, 85 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10509-023-04241-y

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