Articles | Volume 39, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-39-833-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-39-833-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Regular paper
| 
23 Sep 2021
Regular paper |
| 23 Sep 2021
| 23 Sep 2021
Polar tongue of ionisation during geomagnetic superstorm
Dimitry Pokhotelov
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute for Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Neustrelitz, Germany
Isabel Fernandez-Gomez
German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute for Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Neustrelitz, Germany
Claudia Borries
German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute for Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Neustrelitz, Germany
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Electric currents in the ionosphere can impact both satellite and ground-based infrastructure. These currents depend strongly on the collisions of ions and neutral particles. Measuring ion–neutral collisions is often only possible via certain assumptions. The direct measurement of ion–neutral collision frequencies is possible with multifrequency incoherent scatter radar measurements. This paper presents one analysis method of such measurements and discusses its advantages and disadvantages.
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Gravity waves (GWs) are waves in Earth's atmosphere and can be observed as cloud ripples. Under certain conditions, these waves can propagate up into the ionosphere. Here, they can cause ripples in the ionosphere plasma, observable as oscillations of the plasma density. Therefore, GWs contribute to the ionospheric variability, making them relevant for space weather prediction. Additionally, the behavior of these waves allows us to draw conclusions about the atmosphere at these altitudes.
Gunter Stober, Ales Kuchar, Dimitry Pokhotelov, Huixin Liu, Han-Li Liu, Hauke Schmidt, Christoph Jacobi, Kathrin Baumgarten, Peter Brown, Diego Janches, Damian Murphy, Alexander Kozlovsky, Mark Lester, Evgenia Belova, Johan Kero, and Nicholas Mitchell
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Short summary
During geomagnetic storms, enhanced solar wind and changes in the interplanetary magnetic field lead to ionisation anomalies across the polar regions. The superstorm of 20 November 2003 was one of the largest events in recent history. Numerical simulations of ionospheric dynamics during the storm are compared with plasma observations to understand the mechanisms forming the polar plasma anomalies. The results are important for understanding and forecasting space weather in polar regions.
During geomagnetic storms, enhanced solar wind and changes in the interplanetary magnetic field...
