Bibliography

A Comparative Study of Ionospheric Day-To-Day Variability Over Wuhan Based on Ionosonde Measurements and Model Simulations

Ionospheric day-to-day variability is essential for understanding the space environment, while it is still challenging to properly quantify and forecast. In the present work, the day-to-day variability of F2 layer peak electron densities (NmF2) is examined from both observational and modeling perspectives. Ionosonde data over Wuhan station (30.5°N, 114.5°E; 19.3°N magnetic latitude) are compared with simulations from the specific dynamics Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model with thermosphere and ionosphere eXtension (SD-WACCM-X) and the Thermosphere-Ionosphere-Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIEGCM) in 2009 and 2012. Both SD-WACCM-X and TIEGCM are driven by the realistic 3 h geomagnetic index and daily solar input, and the former includes self-consistently solved physics and chemistry in the lower atmosphere. The correlation coefficient between observations and SD-WACCM-X simulations is much larger than that of the TIEGCM simulations, especially during dusk in 2009 and nighttime in 2012. Both the observed and SD-WACCM-X simulated day-to-day variability of NmF2 reveal a similar day-night dependence in 2012 that increases large during the nighttime and decreases during the daytime, and shows favorable consistency of daytime variability in 2009. Both the observations and SD-WACCM-X simulations also display semiannual variations in nighttime NmF2 variability, although the month with maximum variability is slightly different. However, TIEGCM does not reproduce the day-night dependence or the semiannual variations well. The results emphasize the necessity for realistic lower atmospheric perturbations to characterize ionospheric day-to-day variability. This work also provides a validation of the SD-WACCM-X in terms of ionospheric day-to-day variability.

Zhou, Xu; Yue, Xinan; Liu, Han-Li; Lu, Xian; Wu, Haonan; Zhao, Xiukuan; He, Jianhui;

Published by: Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics      Published on:

YEAR: 2021     DOI: 10.1029/2020JA028589

Ionosphere; day-to-day variability; ionosonde; NmF2; TIEGCM; WACCM-X

Impacts of atmospheric ultrafast Kelvin waves on radio scintillations in the equatorial ionosphere

We present a statistical analysis of the amplitudes of GPS scintillations (S4 index) observed throughout 2008\textendash2010 using the satellite radio occultation measurements of the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate (COSMIC). Here, for the first time, periodic variability in the occurrence of S4 is investigated using these data. Significant variations of S4 with periods of 2.5\textendash4 days (quasi-3 days) are identified from the observations during postsunset hours (1900\textendash2400 local time) between 15\textdegreeS\textendash 15\textdegreeN magnetic latitude during this 3 year interval. Coherence analyses of these variations with the geomagnetic Ap index, solar EUV irradiance, and atmospheric wind measurements from an equatorial mesosphere meteor radar at Thumba, India ( 8.5\textdegreeN, 77\textdegreeE) are performed, providing a measure of the relationship between variations in the scintillations and potential drivers. The quasi-3 day variations in S4 are found to covary with the variations of the three drivers examined. In particular, the S4 signatures are found to be coherent with the atmospheric ultrafast Kelvin (UFK) planetary waves characterized by the zonal wind measurements of the radar. This study shows that these UFK waves are as important as the solar and geomagnetic drivers in forcing the day-to-day variations of the occurrence of equatorial spread F.

Liu, Guiping; Immel, Thomas; England, Scott; Frey, Harald; Mende, Stephen; Kumar, Karanam; Ramkumar, Geetha;

Published by: Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics      Published on: 02/2013

YEAR: 2013     DOI: 10.1002/jgra.50139

day-to-day variability; Equatorial ionosphere; scintillation; Ultra Fast Kelvin planetary wave