A case study of the large-scale traveling ionospheric disturbances in the eastern Asian sector during the 2015 St. Patrick's Day geomagnetic storm
oleh: J. Liu, D.-H. Zhang, A. J. Coster, S.-R. Zhang, G.-Y. Ma, Y.-Q. Hao, Z. Xiao
| Format: | Article |
|---|---|
| Diterbitkan: | Copernicus Publications 2019-08-01 |
Deskripsi
<p>This study presents a comprehensive observation of the large-scale traveling ionospheric disturbances (LSTIDs) in the eastern Asian sector during the 2015 St. Patrick's Day (17 March 2015) geomagnetic storm. For the first time, three dense networks of GPS receivers in China and Japan are combined together to obtain the two-dimensional (2-D) vertical total electron content (VTEC) perturbation maps in a wider longitudinal range than previous studies in this region. Results show that an LSTID spanning at least 60<span class="inline-formula"><sup>∘</sup></span> in longitude (80–140<span class="inline-formula"><sup>∘</sup></span> E) occurs as a result of possible atmospheric gravity waves (AGWs) propagating from high to lower latitudes at around 09:40–11:40 UT (universal time), and the crest of this LSTID shows a tendency of dissipation starting from the eastern side. The manifestation of the 2-D VTEC perturbation maps is in good agreement with the recordings from two high-frequency Doppler sounders and the iso-frequency lines from eight ionosondes. Then, the propagation parameters of the LSTIDs are estimated by applying least-square fitting methods to the distinct structures in the 2-D VTEC perturbation plots. In general, the propagation parameters are observably longitudinally dependent. For example, the propagation direction is almost due southward between 105 and 115<span class="inline-formula"><sup>∘</sup></span> E, while it is slightly southwest and southeast in the western and eastern sides of this region. This feature is probably related to the regional geomagnetic declination. The mean values of the period, trough velocity (<span class="inline-formula"><i>V</i><sub>t</sub></span>), crest velocity (<span class="inline-formula"><i>V</i><sub>c</sub></span>), and wavelength of the LSTIDs in the studied longitudinal bands are <span class="inline-formula">74.8±1.4</span> min, <span class="inline-formula">578±16</span> m s<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>, <span class="inline-formula">617±23</span> m s<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span>, and <span class="inline-formula">2691±80</span> km, respectively. Finally, using the VTEC map data from the Madrigal database of the MIT Haystack Observatory, the characteristics of the ionospheric disturbances over the European sector (30–70<span class="inline-formula"><sup>∘</sup></span> N, 10–20<span class="inline-formula"><sup>∘</sup></span> E) are also studied. The results are very different from those in the eastern Asian sector in parameters like the occurrence time, oscillation period, and propagation velocities.</p>