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Extreme low-latitude TEC enhancement and GPS Scintillation at dawn
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  • Sebastijan Mrak,
  • Joshua L. Semeter,
  • Yukitoshi (Toshi) Nishimura,
  • Anthea Coster
Sebastijan Mrak
Boston University, Boston University

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Joshua L. Semeter
Boston University, Boston University
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Yukitoshi (Toshi) Nishimura
Boston University, Boston University
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Anthea Coster
MIT Haystack Observatory, MIT Haystack Observatory
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Abstract

We report on an extreme ionospheric plasma density enhancement and Global Positioning System (GPS) scintillation at dawn, observed within the expanding equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA). The total electron content (TEC) in central America reached 50~TECu at sunrise, the value almost twice as high as the normal afternoon peak. The enhanced EIA expanded poleward and westward from just below 20$^\circ$ magnetic latitude (MLAT) to beyond 30$^\circ$ MLAT at sunrise. The chief ramification of the enhanced EIA was strong GPS scintillation which was observed poleward of 30$^\circ$ northern MLAT and lasted until 8:00 local time. In total, the scintillation lasted for $\sim$5~hours at latitudes north of 20$^\circ$MLAT in central America.
Sep 2021Published in Space Weather volume 19 issue 9. 10.1029/2021SW002740