. The dual frequency signals from the GPS satellites recorded at Rajkot (22.29° N, 70.74° E, Geographic, 14.03° N Geomagnetic) near the Equatorial ionization anomaly crest in India have been analyzed to study the ionospheric variations in terms of Total Electron Content (TEC) for the low solar activity period from April 2005 to December 2007. In this study, we describe the diurnal and seasonal variations of TEC, solar activity dependence of TEC and effects of a space weather related event, a geomagnetic storm on TEC. The diurnal variation of TEC shows pre-dawn minimum for a short period of time, followed by a steep early morning increase and then reaches maximum value between 14:00 LT and 16:00 LT. The mean diurnal variations during different seasons are brought out. It is found that TEC at Rajkot is at its maximum during Equinoctial months (March, April, September, October), and minimum during the Winter months (November, December, January, February), with intermediate values during Summer months (May, June, July, August), showing a semi annual variation. TEC values have been decreasing since 2005, onwards showing positive correlation with solar activity. TEC variations during the geomagnetic storm commencing 24 August 2005 with Dst=−216 nT are analysed. TEC shows a positive ionospheric storm effect on the first day of the storm and negative ionospheric storm effect on the next day. The equatorial Electrojet control on the development of the equatorial anomaly is also demonstrated.

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TEC variations during low solar activity period (2005–2007) near the Equatorial Ionospheric Anomaly Crest region in India

[1] Monthly median NmF2 (maximum electron density of the F2-layer) data at Okinawa, Yamagawa, Kokubunji, and Wakkanai have been collected to investigate the solar activity dependence of the nighttime ionosphere. The result shows that there are seasonal and latitudinal differences of the solar activity variation of nighttime NmF2. The main seasonal effects are as follows: nighttime NmF2 increases with F107 linearly in equinoctial months (March and September), and it tends to saturate with F107 increasing in summer solstice month (June). What is peculiar is that there is an amplification trend of nighttime NmF2 with F107 in winter solstice month (December). The latitudinal difference is mainly displayed by the evolvement course of the variation trend between NmF2 and F107. Using hmF2 (peak height of the F2-layer) data and the NRLMSISE00 model, we estimated the recombination loss around the F2-peak at different solar activity levels. We found that the solar activity variation of the recombination processes around the F2-peak also shows seasonal dependence, which can explain the variation trends of nighttime NmF2 with F107 qualitatively, and field-aligned plasma influx plays an important role in the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) crest region. During the first several hours following sunset in December, there are faster recombination processes around the F2-peak at medium solar activity level in mid-latitude regions. This feature is suggested to be responsible for inducing the amplification trend in winter. In virtue of the calculation of neutral parameters at 300-km altitude and hmF2 data, the variation trend of the recombination processes around the F2-peak with F107 can be explained. It shows that both the solar activity variations of hmF2 and neutral parameters (neutral temperature, density, and vibrational excited N2) are important for the variation trend of nighttime NmF2 with F107. Furthermore, the obvious uplift of hmF2 at low solar activity level following sunset in December is important for the amplification trend.

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1029/2008JA013114

Solar activity variations of nighttime ionospheric peak electron density

Ionospheric F-region response to geomagnetic disturbances

Equatorial scintillations: advances since ISEA-6

The responses of Equatorial Ionization Anomaly (EIA) to the superstorms of October- November 2003 were investigated using the total electron content (TEC) measured with global positioning system (GPS) receivers in China, Southeast Asia, Australian (CSAA), and the American regions. Enhanced EIA was seen to be correlated with the southward turning of the interplanetary magnetic field B, In both the CSAA and American regions, EIA was intensified, corresponding to a large increase in the F-layer peak height (hmF2) measured by ionosonde and digisonde at middle and equatorial latitudes. However, the enhanced EIA was shown to be more significant during the daytime in the American region, which was associated with a series of large substorms when B, was stable southward. The prompt penetration electric field and the wind disturbances dynamo electric field are suggested to be responsible for this observation according to current theory, although some features cannot be totally decipherable. Both the ionogram and magnetometer data show the existence of a weak shielding effect whose effect still needs further study. A clear asymmetric ionospheric response was shown in our TEC observations, even though it was only one month after autumnal equinox. The southern EIA crest was totally obliterated on 29 and 30 October in the CSAA region and on 31 October in the American region. Ion temperatures from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) spacecraft revealed that the unequal energy injection at the polar region might be the reason for this effect. It is concluded that different physical processes have varying degrees of importance on the evolution of EIA in the CSAA and American regions.

https://angeo.copernicus.org/articles/23/693/2005/angeo-23-693-2005.pdf

Responses of equatorial anomaly to the October-November 2003 superstorms

[1] The growth in altitude/latitude of equatorial plasma bubbles was monitored, using simultaneous recordings of VHF scintillations at five locations situated between 3° and 23°N magnetic latitudes along a common meridian (84°E) during February 1980. The onsets of postsunset scintillation were mostly abrupt in character, and their occurrence at higher latitudes was conditional on their prior appearance at lower latitudes, indicating a causal link to irregularities associated with rising equatorial plasma bubbles. The day-to-day occurrence and the latitudinal, and effectively altitudinal, growths are examined in relation to the prereversal enhancement in h′F during sunset hours and its rate of rise, the onset of a postsunset secondary maximum (PSSM) in ionospheric electron content (IEC), and equatorial electrojet strength (EEJ) variations. It is observed that the bubble and associated irregularities, after its onset over the magnetic equator, reached the highest altitudes/latitudes only on those days when a prior PSSM in IEC is observed there in addition to high values of h′F, dh′F/dt and bubble rise velocity; otherwise it will be confined to near equatorial latitudes only. Also, the equatorial h′F, dh′F/dt, magnitude of PSSM and intensity of 4 GHz scintillations at low latitude are all showing positive correlation with daytime EEJ strength variations. It is concluded that, after the initial development of a bubble, the ExB drift and the PSSM play an important role in the subsequent growth and evolution, and EEJ is a useful parameter for the prediction of the development.

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1029/2001RS002586

Evolution and dynamics of equatorial plasma bubbles: Relationships to ExB drift, postsunset total electron content enhancements, and equatorial electrojet strength

VHF nighttime scintillations, recorded during a high solar activity period at a meridian chain of stations covering a magnetic latitude belt of 3°–21°N (420 km subionospheric points) are analyzed to investigate the influence of equatorial spread F irregularities on the occurrence of scintillation at latitudes away from the equator. Observations show that saturated amplitude scintillations start abruptly about one and a half hours after ground sunset and their onset is almost simultaneous at stations whose subionospheric points are within 12°N latitude of the magnetic equator, but is delayed at a station whose subionospheric point is at 21°N magnetic latitude by 15 min to 4 hours. In addition, the occurrence of postsunset scintillations at all the stations is found to be conditional on their prior occurrence at the equatorial station. If no postsunset scintillation activity is seen at the equatorial station, no scintillations are seen at other stations also. The occurrence of scintillations is explained as caused by rising plasma bubbles and associated irregularities over the magnetic equator and the subsequent mapping of these irregularities down the magnetic field lines to the F region of higher latitudes through some instantaneous mechanism; and hence an equatorial control is established on the generation of postsunset scintillation-producing irregularities in the entire low-latitude belt.

Multistation study of nighttime scintillations in low latitudes: Evidence of control by equatorial F region irregularities

Ionospheric electron content (IEC) observed at Delhi (geographic co-ordinates: 28.63°N, 77.22°E; geomagnetic co-ordinates: 19.08°N, 148.91E; dip Latitude 24.8°N), India, for the period 1975/80 and 1986/89 belonging to an ascending phase of solar activity during first halves of solar cycles 21 and 22 respectively have been used to study the diurnal, seasonal, solar and magnetic activity variations. The diurnal variation of seasonal mean of IEC on quiet days shows a secondary peak comparable to the daytime peak in equinox and winter in high solar activity. IECmax (daytime maximum value of IEC, one per day) shows winter anomaly only during high solar activity at Delhi. Further, IECmax shows positive correlation with F10.7 up to about 200 flux units at equinox and 240 units both in winter and summer; for greater F10.7 values, IECmax is substantially constant in all the seasons. IECmax and magnetic activity (Ap) are found to be positively correlated in summer in high solar activity. Winter IECmax shows positive correlation with Ap in low solar activity and negative correlation in high solar activity in both the solar cycles. In equinox IECmax is independent of Ap in both solar cycles in low solar activity. A study of day-to-day variations in IECmax shows single day and alternate day abnormalities, semi-annual and annual variations controlled by the equatorial electrojet strength, and 27-day periodicity attributable to the solar rotation.

/pdf/long-term-ionospheric-electron-content-variations-over-delhi-1p4s394aif.pdf

Lakha Singh

Papers

Evolution and dynamics of equatorial plasma bubbles: Relationships to ExB drift, postsunset total electron content enhancements, and equatorial electrojet strength

Multistation study of nighttime scintillations in low latitudes: Evidence of control by equatorial F region irregularities

Long term ionospheric electron content variations over Delhi

A multi-station satellite radio beacon study of ionospheric variations during total solar eclipses

Equivalent slab thickness of the ionosphere over 26 deg N through the ascending half of a solar cycle