Assessment of International GNSS Service Global Ionosphere Map products over China region based on measurements from the Crustal Movement Observation Network of China

The global ionosphere maps(GIM)provided by the International GNSS Service(IGS)are extensively utilized for ionospheric morphology monitoring,scientific research,and practical application.Assessing the credibility of GIM products in data-sparse regions is of paramount importance.In this study,measurements from the Crustal Movement Observation Network of China(CMONOC)are leveraged to evaluate the suitability of IGS-GIM products over China region in 2013-2014.The indices of mean error(ME),root mean square error(RMSE),and normalized RMSE(NRMSE)are then utilized to quantify the accuracy of IGS-GIM products.Results revealed distinct local time and latitudinal dependencies in IGS-GIM errors,with substantially high errors at nighttime(NRMSE:39%)and above 40°latitude(NRMSE:49%).Seasonal differences also emerged,with larger equinoctial deviations(NRMSE:33.5%)compared with summer(20%).A preliminary analysis implied that the irregular assimilation of sparse IGS observations,compounded by China’s distinct geomagnetic topology,may manifest as error variations.These results suggest that modeling based solely on IGS-GIM observations engenders inadequate representations across China and that a thorough examination would proffer the necessary foundation for advancing regional total electron content(TEC)constructions.

The anisotropy of suprathermal electrons in the Martian ionosphere

Suprathermal electrons are an important population of the Martian ionosphere, either produced by photoionization of atmospheric neutrals or supplied from the Solar Wind (SW). This study is dedicated to an in-depth investigation of the pitch angle distribution of suprathermal electrons at two representative energies, 19−55 eV and 124−356 eV, using the extensive measurements made by the Solar Wind Electron Analyzer on board the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution. Throughout the study, we focus on the overall degree of anisotropy, defined as the standard deviation of suprathermal electron intensity among different directions which is normalized by the mean omni-directional intensity. The available data reveal the following characteristics: (1) In general, low energy electrons are more isotropic than high energy electrons, and dayside electrons are more isotropic than nightside electrons;(2) On the dayside, the anisotropy increases with increasing altitude at low energies but remains roughly constant at high energies, whereas on the nightside, the anisotropy decreases with increasing altitude at all energies;(3) Electrons tend to be more isotropic in strongly magnetized regions than in weakly magnetized regions, especially on the nightside. These observations indicate that the anisotropy is a useful diagnostic of suprathermal electron transport, for which the conversion between the parallel and perpendicular momenta as required by the conservation of the first adiabatic invariant, along with the atmospheric absorption at low altitudes, are two crucial factors modulating the observed variation of the anisotropy. Our analysis also highlights the different roles on the observed anisotropy exerted by suprathermal electrons of different origins.

The nature of electron density enhancement over a wide altitude range during ionosphere heating experiments at EISCAT

During the course of ionospheric heating experiments, researchers at the European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association (EISCAT) observed an apparent electron density enhancement. The enhancement extended over a wide range of altitudes, above the reflection altitude of the high-frequency pump wave. However, whether this enhancement actually corresponds to a true enhancement in electron density remains an open question. When the dispersion relation of ion acoustic waves is followed, the frequency ratio of the enhanced ion line to the background ion line suggests that the profile of the effective ion mass may have remained unchanged. Furthermore, the solar radio flux and ion drift velocity indicate no significant changes in the ion species and their densities. In conclusion, the electron density enhancement observed at EISCAT should not, in fact, be considered a true enhancement.

Comparison of Diurnal,Seasonal and Solar Cycle Variations of High-latitude,Mid-latitude and Low-latitude Ionosphere

Comparison of regular(diurnal,seasonal and solar cycle)variations of high-latitude,mid-latitude and low-latitude ionospheric characteristics has been provided on basis of local empirical models of the peak electron density and the peak height.The local empirical models were derived from the hand-scaled ionogram data recorded by DPS-4 digisondes located at Norilsk(69°N,88°E),Irkutsk(52°N,104°E)and Hainan(19°N,109°E)for a 6-year period from December,2002 to December,2008.The technique used to build the local empirical model is described.The primary focus is diurnal-seasonal behavior under low solar activity and its change with increasing solar activity.Both common and specific features of the high-latitude(Norilsk),mid-latitude(Irkutsk)and low-latitude(Hainan)regular variations were revealed using their local empirical models.

Influence of the Ionosphere on the Observation of the Mid-Latitude Pi2 Pulsations at the Global Scale

Results of our investigation showed that occurrence frequency of Pi2 over a 24 hour period undergoes seasonal variations in time coincidence with foF2. In the winter months, at sunrise and sunset (when foF2gradients are the largest) the observation probability of these oscillations is minimal. At periods of summer solstice when the F2-layer persists almost round the clock, no effect of Pi2 pulsation attenuation is observed at sunrise and sunset. The pulsation amplitudes behave in a similar manner. Results of this study suggest the conclusion that the propagation of signal from the Pi2 sourse into the mid-latitudes, and also the parameters of these pulsations are essentially affected by electron density in the ionospheric F2-layer.

Automatic recognition of tweek atmospherics and plasma diagnostics in the lower ionosphere with the machine learning method

Tweek atmospherics are extremely low frequency and very low frequency pulse signals with frequency dispersion characteristics that originate from lightning discharges and that propagate in the Earth–ionosphere waveguide over long distances.In this study,we developed an automatic method to recognize tweek atmospherics and diagnose the lower ionosphere based on the machine learning method.The differences(automatic−manual)in each ionosphere parameter between the automatic method and the manual method were−0.07±2.73 km,0.03±0.92 cm^(−3),and 91±1,068 km for the ionospheric reflection height(h),equivalent electron densities at reflection heights(Ne),and propagation distance(d),respectively.Moreover,the automatic method is capable of recognizing higher harmonic tweek sferics.The evaluation results of the model suggest that the automatic method is a powerful tool for investigating the long-term variations in the lower ionosphere.

Progress of Geodesy Related Ionosphere from Chinese Scientists in the Period of 2019—2023

The ionosphere is the ionized part of the upper atmosphere of the Earth,which plays an important role in atmospheric electricity and forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere.It influences radio propagation significantly,such as the Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS).Meanwhile,the GNSS is also an essential technique for sensing the variation of ionosphere.During the years of 2019—2023,a large number of Chinese geodesy scientists devoted much efforts to the geodesy related ionosphere.Due to the very limited length,the achievements are carried out from the following six aspects,including:①The ionospheric correction models for BDS and BDSBAS;②Real-time global ionospheric monitoring and modeling;③The ionospheric 2D and 3D modeling based on GNSS and LEO satellites;④The ionospheric prediction based on artificial intelligence;⑤The monitoring and mitigation of ionospheric disturbances for GNSS users;⑥The ionospheric related data products and classical applications.

Assessment of corrected time-step method for nominal ionospheric gradient calculation: A comparative analysis with spatial approaches

The effect of ionospheric delay on the ground-based augmentation system under normal conditions can be mitigated by determining the value of the nominal ionospheric gradient(σvig).The nominal ionospheric gradient is generally obtained from Continuously Operating Reference Stations data by using the spatial single-difference method(mixed-pair,station-pair,or satellite-pair)or the temporal single-difference method(time-step).The time-step method uses only a single receiver,but it still contains ionospheric temporal variations.We introduce a corrected time-step method using a fixed-ionospheric pierce point from the geostationary equatorial orbit satellite and test it through simulations based on the global ionospheric model.We also investigate the effect of satellite paths on the corrected time-step method in the region of the equator,which tends to be in a more north–south direction and to have less coverage for the east–west ionospheric gradient.This study also addresses the limitations of temporal variation correction coverage and recommends using only the correction from self-observations.All processes are developed under simulations because observational data are still difficult to obtain.Our findings demonstrate that the corrected time-step method yieldsσvig values consistent with other approaches.

Assessment of the performance of the TOPGNSS and ANN-MB antennas for ionospheric measurements using low-cost u-blox GNSS receivers

Low-cost GNSS receivers have recently been gaining reliability as good candidates for ionospheric studies. In line with these gains are genuine concerns about improving the performance of these receivers. In this work, we present a comprehensive investigation of the performances of two antennas(the u-blox ANN-MB and the TOPGNSS TOP-106) used on a low-cost GNSS receiver known as the u-blox ZED-F9P. The two antennas were installed on two identical and co-located u-blox receivers. Data used from both receivers cover the period from January to June 2022. Results from the study indicate that the signal strengths are dominantly greater for the receiver with the TOPGNSS antenna than for the receiver with the ANN-MB antenna, implying that the TOPGNSS antenna is better than the ANN-MB antenna in terms of providing greater signal strengths. Summarily, the TOPGNSS antenna also performed better in minimizing the occurrence of cycle slips on phase TEC measurements. There are no conspicuous differences between the variances(computed as 5-min standard deviations) of phase TEC measurements for the two antennas, except for a period around May-June when the TOPGNSS gave a better performance in terms of minimizing the variances in phase TEC. Remarkably, the ANN-MB antenna gave a better performance than the TOPGNSS antenna in terms of minimizing the variances in pseudorange TEC for some satellite observations. For precise horizontal(North and East) positioning, the receiver with the TOPGNSS antenna gave better results, while the receiver with the ANN-MB antenna gave better vertical(Up) positioning. The errors for the receivers of both antennas are typically within about 5 m(the monthly mean was usually smaller than 1 m) in the horizontal direction and within about 10 m(the monthly mean was usually smaller than 4 m) in the vertical direction.

Longitudinal dependence of the forecast accuracy of the ionospheric total electron content in the equatorial zone

The longitudinal dependence of the behavior of ionospheric parameters has been the subject of a number of works where significant variations are discovered.This also applies to the prediction of the ionospheric total electron content(TEC),which neural network methods have recently been widely used.However,the results are mainly presented for a limited set of meridians.This paper examines the longitudinal dependence of the TEC forecast accuracy in the equatorial zone.In this case,the methods are used that provided the best accuracy on three meridians:European(30°E),Southeastern(110°E)and American(75°W).Results for the stations considered are analyzed as a function of longitude using the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Global Ionosphere Map(JPL GIM)for 2015.These results are for 2 h ahead and 24 h ahead forecast.It was found that in this case,based on the metric values,three groups of architectures can be distinguished.The first group included long short-term memory(LSTM),gated recurrent unit(GRU),and temporal convolutional networks(TCN)models as a part of unidirectional deep learning models;the second group is based on the recurrent models from the first group,which were supplemented with a bidirectional algorithm,increasing the TEC forecasting accuracy by 2-3 times.The third group,which includes the bidirectional TCN architecture(BiTCN),provided the highest accuracy.For this architecture,according to data obtained for 9 equatorial stations,practical independence of the TEC prediction accuracy from longitude was observed under the following metrics(Mean Absolute Error MAE,Root Mean Square Error RMSE,Mean Absolute Percentage Error MAPE):MAE(2 h)is 0.2 TECU approximately;MAE(24 h)is 0.4 TECU approximately;RMSE(2 h)is less than 0.5 TECU except Niue station(RMSE(2 h)is 1 TECU approximately);RMSE(24 h)is in the range of 1.0-1.7 TECU;MAPE(2 h)<1%except Darwin station,MAPE(24 h)<2%.This result was confirmed by data from additional 5 stations that formed latitudinal chains in the equatorial part of the three meridians.The complete correspondence of the observational and predicted TEC values is illustrated using several stations for disturbed conditions on December 19-22,2015,which included the strongest magnetic storm in the second half of the year(min Dst=-155 nT).

Statistical Characteristics of the Temporal Spectrum of Scattered Radiation in the Equatorial Ionosphere

On the basis of the solution of the space-time characteristic system by the method of geometric optics using symbolic calculations,analytical and numerical simulation of the propagation of the ordinary and extraordinary radio waves in the conducting equatorial ionospheric plasma was made considering the anisotropy of plasma irregularities and non-stationary nature of propagation medium.Broadening of the spectrum and the displacement of its maximum contain velocity of a turbulent plasma flow and parameters characterizing anisotropic plasmonic structures.Statistical moments of both radio waves do not depend on the absorption sign and are valid for both active and absorptive random media.Temporal pulsations and conductivity of a turbulent ionospheric plasma have an influence on the evaluation of the spectrum-varying propagation distances travelling by these waves.The new double-humped effect in the temporal spectrum has been revealed for the ordinary wave varying anisotropy coefficient and dip angle of stretched plasmonic structures.From a theoretical point of view,the algorithms developed in this work allow effective modelling of the propagation of both radio signals in the equatorial conductive ionospheric plasma,considering the external magnetic field,inhomogeneities of electron density in-homogeneities,as well as non-stationary.

The earthquake-related disturbances in ionosphere and project of the first China seismo-electromagnetic satellite

Based on the case studies and statistical analysis of earthquake-related ionospheric disturbances mainly from DEMETER satellite, ground-based GPS and ionosounding data, this paper summarizes the statisw tical characteristics of earthquake-related ionospheric disturbances, including electromagnetic emissions, plasma perturbations and variation of energetic particle flux. According to the main results done by Chinese scientists, fusing with the existed study from global researches, seismo-ionospheric disturbances usually occurred a few days or hours before earthquake occurrence. Paralleling to these case studies, lithosphere-atmosphere-ionosphere （LAI） coupling mechanisms are checked and optimized. A thermo-electric model was proposed to explain the seismo-electromagnetic effects before earthquakes. A propagation model was put forward to explain the electromagnetic waves into the ionosphere. According to the requirement of earthquake prediction research, China seismo-electromagnetic satellite, the first space-based platform of Chinese earthquake stereoscopic observation system, is proposed and planned to launch at about the end of 2014. It focuses on checking the LAI model and distinguishing earthquake-related ionospheric disturbance. The preliminary design for the satellite will adopt CAST-2000 platform with eight payloads onboard. It is believed that the satellite will work together with the ground monitoring network to improve the capability to capture seismo-electromagnetic information, which is beneficial for earthquake monitoring and prediction researches.

Penetration characteristics of VLF wave from atmosphere into lower ionosphere

The factors affecting the reflection and transmission coefficient of the ionosphere have been analyzed.These factors include wave frequency,incident angle,geomagnetic inclination,electron density and collision frequency in the ionosphere.The ionosphere refractive index is also analyzed.The ionosphere above 70 km is considered to be homogeneous and anisotropic,and the reflection and transmission coefficient matrix is calculated using matrix method.Simultaneously the Booker quartic equation is solved to get the refractive index in the ionosphere.The results show that when the wave frequency is higher,it is easier to penetrate into the ionosphere from its bottom boundary and the propagation attenuation in the ionosphere is smaller.TE（traverse electric） wave and TM（traverse magnetic） wave can both penetrate into the ionosphere with a small incident angle,while TE wave can hardly transmit into the ionosphere when the incident angle is large.The transmission coefficient decreases as the geomagnetic inclination increases.TE and TM wave cannot penetrate into the ionosphere at magnetic equator.When the electron collision frequency is higher,it is easier for VLF wave to penetrate into the ionosphere and the attenuation of ordinary wave is weaker,which may be caused by the energy transportation between the waves and the particles.The ordinary（O） wave experiences severer attenuation than extraordinary（X） wave,and X wave is a penetration mode whereas O wave is a non-penetration mode in the ionosphere.All the results indicate that VLF wave with higher frequency is easier to penetrate into the ionosphere and to be recorded by the satellites at high latitude.It is hard for ULF and the lower frequency VLF wave to transmit into the ionosphere directly for the severe reflection and attenuation.It may transmit into the ionosphere with a small incident angle due to the nonlinear effect,for example,the interaction between the waves and the particles or cross modulation,and then propagate along the whistle duct with small attenuation.This work may be a preliminary theoretical exploration for the future calculation on the response of ground based VLF artificial transmitter in the ionosphere and further study on the seismic ionosphere coupling model.

Novel adaptive Hatch filter to mitigate the effects of ionosphere and multipath on LAAS

It has been proven that carrier smoothing and differential global positioning system （DGPS） are effective to improve the accuracy of pseudorange by reducing the noise in it and eliminating almost all the common mode errors between the ground station and user. However, another issue coming with local area augmentation system （LAAS） is how to find an adaptive smoothing window width to minimize the error on account of ionosphere delay and multipath. Based on the errors analysis in carrier smoothing process, a novel algorithm is formulated to design adaptive Hatch filter whose smoothing window width flexibly varies with the characteristic of ionosphere delay and multipath in the differential carrier smoothing process. By conducting the simulation in LAAS and after compared with traditional Hatch filers, it reveals that not only the accuracy of differential correction, but also the accuracy and the robustness of positioning results are significantly improved by using the designed adaptive Hatch filter.

Online computation of International Reference Ionosphere Extended to Plasmasphere(IRI-Plas) model for space weather

Ionosphere is the most challenging part of Space Weather with its spatio-temporal variability and dispersive nature. Ionospheric models are very important in reducing positioning error in GNSS system.International Reference Ionosphere(IRI) is an empirical, deterministic and climatic model of ionosphere up to 2000 km in height. Recently, IRI Extended to Plasmasphere(IRI-Plas) model has been developed to extend the interest region of IRI to the GPS orbital height of 20,000 km. Both IRI and IRI-Plas provide ionospheric parameters such as electron density, electron and ion temperatures according to their height profiles. In order to update the model to current ionospheric conditions, IRI-Plas can input F2 layer critical frequency(foF2), maximum ionization height(hmF2), and also Total Electron Content(TEC).Online IRI-Plas is developed for the ionospheric community to run multiple tasks at various locations,dates and times with optional foF2, hmF2 and TEC inputs in a user-friendly manner. In this paper, we are going to present the capabilities of the Online IRI-Plas service and provide some comparisons between IRI-Plas outputs and ionosonde measurements. The comparison between online IRI-Plas foF2 outputs and ionosonde foF2 measurements indicates that the model with TEC input can significantly improve the representation of the current ionospheric state, which is very successful especially in the geomagnetically disturbed days.

Variability of the Martian ionosphere from the MAVEN Radio Occultation Science Experiment

The Martian ionosphere is produced by a number of controlling processes, including solar extreme ultraviolet radiation (EUV) and X-ray ionization, impact ionization by precipitating electrons, and day-to-night transport. This study investigates the structural variability of the Martian ionosphere with the aid of the radio occultation (RO) experiments made on board the recent Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft. On the dayside, the RO electron density profiles are described by the superposition of two Chapman models, representing the contributions from both the primary layer and the low-altitude secondary layer. The inferred subsolar peak electron densities and altitudes are 1.24×10^5 cm^-3 and 127 km for the former, and 4.28×10^4 cm^-3 and 97 km for the latter, respectively, in general agreement with previous results appropriate for the low solar activity conditions. Our results strengthen the role of solar EUV and X-ray ionization as the driving source of plasma on the dayside of Mars. Beyond the terminator, a systematic decline in ionospheric total electron content is revealed by the MAVEN RO measurements made from the terminator crossing up to a solar zenith angle of 120°. Such a trend is indicative of day-to-night plasma transport as an important source for the nightside Martian ionosphere.

Temporal distribution characteristics of GNSS ionospheric occultation data and its effects in earthquake-ionosphere anomaly detection

The temporal distribution characteristics of COSMIC occultation data are analyzed in detail, and the limitations in earthquake-ionosphere anomaly detection caused by the temporal distribution characteristics of COSMIC occultation data are discussed using the example of the Wenchuan earthquake. The results demonstrate that there is no fixed temporal resolution for COSMIC occultation data when compared with other ionospheric observation techniques. Therefore, occultation data cannot currently be independently utilized in research studies but can only be used as a complement to other ionospheric observation techniques for applications with high temporal resolution demands, such as earthquake-ionosphere anomaly detection.

Manifestations of the earthquake preparations in the ionosphere total electron content variations

Recent ionospheric observations report anomalous total electron content (TEC) deviations prior strong earthquakes. We discuss common fetures of the pre-earthquake TEC disturbances on the basis of statistics covering 50 strong seismic events during 2005-2006. The F2-layer ionospheric plasma drift under action of the electric fields of seismic origin is proposed as the main reason of producing TEC anomalies. The origin of such electric fields is discussed in terms of the lithosphere-atmosphere-ionosphere coupling system. This theory is supported by numerical simulations using global Upper Atmosphere Model (UAM). UAM calculations show that the vertical electric current with the density of about 20 - 40 nA/m2 flowing between the Earth and ionosphere over an area of about 200 by 2000 km is required to produce the TEC disturbances with the amplitude of about 30% - 50% relatively to the non-disturbed conditions. Ionosphere responses on the variations of the latitudinal position, direction and configuration of the vertical electric currents have been investigated. We show that not only the vertical component of the ionospheric plasma drift but also horizontal components play an important role in producing pre-earthquake TEC disturbances.

An Introduction to Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere Coupling Small Satellite Constellation

A future Chinese mission is introduced to study the coupling between magnetosphere,ionosphere and thermosphere,i.e.the Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere Coupling Small Satellite Constellation(MIT).The scientific objective of the mission is to focus on the outflow ions from the ionosphere to the magnetosphere.The constellation is planning to be composed of four small satellites;each small satellite has its own orbit and crosses the polar region at nearly the same time but at different altitude.The payloads onboard include particle detectors,electromagnetic payloads,auroral imagers and neutral atom imagers.With these payloads,the mission will be able to investigate acceleration mechanism of the upflow ions at different altitudes.Currently the orbits have been determined and prototypes of some have also been completed.Competition for next phase selection is scheduled in late 2015.

Propagation characteristics of power line harmonic radiation in the ionosphere

Theoretical model and solutions on power line harmonic radiation （PLHR） propagating in the ground, air, and anisotropic homogeneous ionosphere are presented, The theoretical model is verified by the PLHR events observed by the DEMETER satellite. Some propagation characteristics of PLHR based on the model are obtained. This paper is bene- ficial to quantitatively interpret the formation mechanism of PLHR phenomenon.