The High Latitude Ionospheric Response to the Major May 2024 Geomagnetic Storm: A Synoptic View

Abstract The high latitude ionospheric evolution of the May 10‐11, 2024, geomagnetic storm is investigated in terms of Total Electron Content and contextualized with Incoherent Scatter Radar and ionosonde observations. Substantial plasma lifting is observed within the initial Storm Enhanced Density...

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Main Authors: David R. Themens, Sean Elvidge, Anthony McCaffrey, P. T. Jayachandran, Anthea Coster, Roger H. Varney, Ivan Galkin, Lindsay V. Goodwin, Chris Watson, Sophie Maguire, Andrew J. Kavanagh, Shun‐Rong Zhang, Larisa Goncharenko, Asti Bhatt, Gareth Dorrian, Keith Groves, Alan G. Wood, Ben Reid
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-10-01
Series:Geophysical Research Letters
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL111677
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Summary:Abstract The high latitude ionospheric evolution of the May 10‐11, 2024, geomagnetic storm is investigated in terms of Total Electron Content and contextualized with Incoherent Scatter Radar and ionosonde observations. Substantial plasma lifting is observed within the initial Storm Enhanced Density plume with ionospheric peak heights increasing by 150–300 km, reaching levels of up to 630 km. Scintillation is observed within the cusp during the initial expansion phase of the storm, spreading across the auroral oval thereafter. Patch transport into the polar cap produces broad regions of scintillation that are rapidly cleared from the region after a strong Interplanetary Magnetic Field reversal at 2230UT. Strong heating and composition changes result in the complete absence of the F2‐layer on the eleventh, suffocating high latitude convection from dense plasma necessary for Tongue of Ionization and patch formation, ultimately resulting in a suppression of polar cap scintillation on the eleventh.
ISSN:0094-8276
1944-8007