Simultaneous Global Ionospheric Disturbances Associated With Penetration Electric Fields During Intense and Minor Solar and Geomagnetic Disturbances
Abstract
A new observational phenomenon, named Simultaneous Global Ionospheric Density Disturbance (SGD), is identified in GNSS total electron content (TEC) data during periods of three typical geospace disturbances: a Coronal Mass Ejection‐driven severe disturbance event, a high‐speed stream event, and a minor disturbance day with a maximum Kp of 4. SGDs occur frequently on dayside and dawn sectors, with a ∼1% TEC increase. Notably, SGDs can occur under minor solar‐geomagnetic disturbances. SGDs are likely caused by penetration electric fields (PEFs) of solar‐geomagnetic origin, as they are associated with Bz southward, increased auroral AL/AU, and solar wind pressure enhancements. These findings offer new insights into the nature of PEFs and their ionospheric impact while confirming some key earlier results obtained through alternative methods. Importantly, the accessibility of extensive GNSS networks, with at least 6,000 globally distributed receivers for ionospheric research, means that rich PEF information can be acquired, offering researchers numerous opportunities to investigate geospace electrodynamics.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Sep 29, 2023
- Source ID
- 10.1029/2023gl104250
Entities
People
- Andres Spicher
- Anthea J. Coster
- Bhagyashree Waghule
- Björn J. Gustavsson
- Delores Knipp
- Ercha Aa
- Juha Vierinen
- Larry R Lyons
- Philip J. Erickson
- Shun-Rong Zhang
- Yukitoshi Nishimura
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- Boston University
- Directorate for Geosciences
- Heliophysics Science Division
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Office of Naval Research Global
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of Colorado Boulder
- University of Tromsø – The Arctic University of Norway