Wake Potential and Wake Effects on the Ionospheric Plasma Density Measurements With Sounding Rockets

Abstract. The ESA Swarm constellation includes three satellites, which have been observing the Earth's ionosphere since November 2013, following polar orbits. The main ionospheric plasma parameters, such as electron density and temperature, are measured by means of Langmuir probes (Lps); electron density measurements, in particular, are nowadays largely considered as qualitatively reliable, and have been used in several published papers to date. In this work, we aim to discuss how some technical characteristics of Swarm Lps, such as their size and location on board the satellites, as well as the operational setup of the instruments, could lead to limitations in their accuracy if one underestimates the influence of satellite proximity, and the larger extension of the plasma sheath surrounding the probes due to the operational point of the voltage ripple. Two specific corrections are proposed for the assessment and possible mitigation of such effects. Finally, a comparison is made with electron density measurements from CSES-01 mission, which relies on Langmuir probes as well, whose geometry and operating mode are standard.

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Low-Earth-Orbit observations for space weather and space climate

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-12209 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Irina Zakharenkova ◽

Iurii Cherniak ◽

Sergey Sokolovskiy ◽

William Schreiner ◽

Qian Wu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Electron Density ◽

Plasma Density ◽

Space Weather ◽

Ionospheric Plasma ◽

Radio Occultation ◽

Satellite Orbit ◽

Electron Content ◽

Gps Measurements ◽

Total Electron ◽

Ionospheric Plasma Density

<p>Many of the modern Low-Earth-Orbiting satellites are now equipped with dual-frequency GPS receivers for Radio Occultation (RO) and Precise Orbit Determination (POD). The space-borne GPS measurements can be successfully utilized for ionospheric climatology and space weather monitoring. The combination of GPS measurements, which include RO observations and POD measurements from the upward-looking GPS antenna, provides information about electron density distribution (profile) below the satellite orbit and an integrated Total Electron Content (TEC) above the satellite representing an important data source for electron density climatology above the F2 layer peak on a global scale. We demonstrate the advantages of using space-borne LEO GPS measurements, both RO and upward-looking, for Space Weather activity monitoring including specification of ionospheric plasma density structures at different altitudinal domains of the ionosphere in quiet and disturbed conditions. After the great success of the COSMIC-1 (Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate) mission operating since 2006, the six COSMIC-2 satellites were launched into a 24 deg inclination orbit in June 2019. The COSMIC-2 scientific payloads with the advanced Tri-GNSS Radio-Occultation Receiver System provide multiple observation types including multi-GNSS TEC (limb and overhead), RO electron density profiles, amplitude/phase scintillation indices, in-situ ion densities and velocities. The COSMIC-2 advanced instruments allow detection of ionospheric plasma density structures of various scales, and the monitoring of high-rate amplitude and phase scintillations both above and below a satellite orbit. The COSMIC-2 multi-instrumental observations will contribute to a better understanding of the equatorial ionosphere morphology and future forecasting of ionospheric irregularities and radio wave scintillations that harmfully affect satellite-to-Earth communication and navigation systems. We present results of post-event analyses for severe space weather events demonstrating a great potential and contribution of the COSMIC-1/2 missions in combination with the ground-based GNSS receivers and other LEO missions like C/NOFS, DMSP, MetOp, TerraSAR-X, and Swarm for monitoring the space weather effects in the Earth&#8217;s ionosphere.</p>

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