loading page

Polar Topside TEC Enhancement Revealed by Jason-2 Measurements
  • Xiaoqing Pi,
  • Anthony James Mannucci,
  • Olga P. Verkhoglyadova
Xiaoqing Pi
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

Author Profile
Anthony James Mannucci
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
Author Profile
Olga P. Verkhoglyadova
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
Author Profile

Abstract

Polar topside total electron content (TEC) enhancement (PTTE) above 1336 km altitude is reported for the first time. The results are based on measurements from 2008 to 2018 made using a GPS receiver onboard NASA’s Jason-2 satellite. The enhancement can exceed 5.5 TEC units or 78% relative to the dayside ambient state. Comparisons with COSMIC/FORMOSAT-3 topside TEC measurements confirm the PTTE events. Our statistical analysis reveals that PTTE mostly occurs in the southern dayside polar cap, with a seasonal preference of southern summer, regardless of geomagnetic conditions. Our case analysis indicates that PTTE is associated with the tongue of ionization. This suggests that the source of PTTE may be the dayside F region plasma that moves poleward following the anti-sunward plasma convection, and the plasma upflow driven by the polar wind may act to cause PTTE. The hemispheric asymmetry in PTTE occurrence remains to be a major unsolved puzzle.
Mar 2021Published in Earth and Space Science volume 8 issue 3. 10.1029/2020EA001429