Speaker
Description
Ionospheric disturbance indices have been developed to quantify ionospheric variability and identify perturbations associated with space weather phenomena, given that the ionosphere is a highly dynamic region of the Earth's upper atmosphere that is strongly influenced by solar and geomagnetic activity. Variations in ionospheric electron density can significantly affect radio wave propagation and satellite-based navigation systems.
This study proposes a climatological analysis of ionospheric disturbance indices derived from data collected by Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers using the Open Advanced System for Ionospheric Studies (OASIS) platform (Picanço et al., 2025). In particular, the Total Electron Content (TEC) variation (ΔTEC), the Rate of TEC Index (ROTI), and the Sudden Ionospheric Disturbance Index (SIDX) are analyzed to investigate their behavior and sensitivity under different solar and geomagnetic conditions to support the development of a disturbance scale.
The analysis focuses on ionospheric variability over regions influenced by the South American Magnetic Anomaly (SAMA), where enhanced particle precipitation can significantly affect the ionospheric environment and impact satellite-based communication and navigation signals. Investigating the climatological behavior of these indices in this region can provide important insights into ionospheric variability under the influence of the SAMA. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to advance the use of ionospheric disturbance indices for monitoring variability in the ionosphere and improving the understanding of its behavior under different space weather conditions.