# Cosmic Noise Absorption During Solar Proton Events in WACCM-D and Riometer Observations

## TL;DR

This study compares riometer observations and WACCM-D model simulations to analyze cosmic noise absorption during solar proton events, highlighting model accuracy and areas for improvement in representing energetic particle precipitation effects.

## Contribution

It introduces a correction method for non-linear CNA response and evaluates WACCM-D's ability to reproduce observed CNA during SPEs.

## Key findings

- WACCM-D reproduces CNA with less than 0.5 dB difference poleward of 66° geomagnetic latitude.
- Model overestimates CNA extent by 1° to 3° geomagnetic latitude due to fixed proton cutoff.
- Discrepancies during twilight and sunlit conditions highlight areas for model refinement.

## Abstract

Solar proton events (SPEs) cause large-scale ionization in the middle atmosphere leading to ozone loss and changes in the energy budget of the middle atmosphere. The accurate implementation of SPEs and other particle ionization sources in climate models is necessary to understand the role of energetic particle precipitation (EPP) in climate variability. We use riometer observations from 16 riometer stations and the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model with added D region ion chemistry (WACCM-D) to study the spatial and temporal extent of cosmic noise absorption (CNA) during 62 solar proton events from 2000 to 2005. We also present a correction method for the non-linear response of observed CNA during intense absorption events. We find that WACCM-D can reproduce the observed CNA well with some need for future improvement and testing of the used EPP forcing. The average absolute difference between the model and the observations is found to be less than 0.5 dB poleward of about $66^\circ$ geomagnetic latitude, and increasing with decreasing latitude to about 1 dB equatorward of about $66^\circ$ geomagnetic latitude. The differences are largest during twilight conditions where the modeled changes in CNA are more abrupt compared to observations. An overestimation of about $1^\circ$ to $3^\circ$ geomagnetic latitude in the extent of the CNA is observed due to the fixed proton cutoff latitude in the model. An unexplained underestimation of CNA by the model during sunlit conditions is observed at stations within the polar cap during 18 of the studied events.