Articles | Volume 35, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-377-2017
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-377-2017
Regular paper
 | 
13 Mar 2017
Regular paper |  | 13 Mar 2017

MONITOR Ionospheric Network: two case studies on scintillation and electron content variability

Yannick Béniguel, Iurii Cherniak, Alberto Garcia-Rigo, Pierrick Hamel, Manuel Hernández-Pajares, Roland Kameni, Anton Kashcheyev, Andrzej Krankowski, Michel Monnerat, Bruno Nava, Herbert Ngaya, Raül Orus-Perez, Hughes Secrétan, Damien Sérant, Stefan Schlüter, and Volker Wilken

Abstract. The ESA MONITOR network is composed of high-frequency-sampling global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) receivers deployed mainly at low and high latitudes to study ionosphere variability and jointly with global GNSS data and ionospheric processing software in support of the GNSS and its satellite-based augmentation systems (SBAS) like the European EGNOS. In a recent phase of the project, the network was merged with the CNES/ASECNA network and new receivers were added to complement the latter in the western African sector. This paper summarizes MONITOR, presenting two case studies on scintillations (using almost 2 years of data measurements). The first case occurred during the major St. Patrick's Day geomagnetic storm in 2015. The second case study was performed in the last phase of the project, which was supported by ESA EGNOS Project Office, when we paid special attention to extreme events that might degrade the system performance of the European EGNOS.

Download
Short summary
The work presented in this paper was done in the frame of an ESA activity. The aim of this project was to study ionosphere disturbances liable to impact navigation systems. This project has been running over several years, allowing enough data acquisition to gain sufficient knowledge of ionosphere variability. It was launched to support the European Satellite-Based Augmented System (EGNOS), also considering a possible extension of the system over Africa.