A Case Study of Polar Cap Sporadic-E Layer Associated with TEC Variations

The Sporadic-E (Es) layer is an often-observed phenomenon at high latitudes; however, our understanding of the polar cap Es layer is severely limited due to the scarce number of measurements. Here, the first comprehensive study of the polar cap Es layer associated with Global Positioning System (GPS...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Remote Sensing
Main Authors: Yong Wang, Periyadan T. Jayachandran, David R. Themens, Anthony M. McCaffrey, Qing-He Zhang, Shiva David, Richard Chadwick
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021
Subjects:
polar cap
the sporadic-E layer
Resolute Bay
spatial structures
TEC variations
scintillations
Science
Q
Canada
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13071324
https://doaj.org/article/4f05c0d807374e66a9ccbcd72e4b2a49
Description
Summary:The Sporadic-E (Es) layer is an often-observed phenomenon at high latitudes; however, our understanding of the polar cap Es layer is severely limited due to the scarce number of measurements. Here, the first comprehensive study of the polar cap Es layer associated with Global Positioning System (GPS) Total Electron Content (TEC) variations and scintillations is presented with multiple measurements at Resolute, Canada (Canadian Advanced Digital Ionosonde (CADI), Northward-looking face of Resolute Incoherent-Scatter Radar (RISR-N), and GPS receiver). According to the joint observations, the polar cap Es layer is a thin patch structure with variously high electron density, which gradually develops into the lower E region (~100 km) and horizontally extends >200 km. Moreover, the TEC variations produced by the polar cap Es layer are pulse-like enhancements with a general amplitude of ~0.5 TECu and are followed by smaller but rapid TEC perturbations. Furthermore, the possible scintillation effects likely associated with the polar cap Es layer are also discussed. As a consequence, the results widely expand our understanding on the polar cap Es layer, in particular on TEC variations.

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