Effects of Solar Eclipse of March 20, 2015 on the Ionosphere

TL;DR

This study investigates the impact of the March 20, 2015 solar eclipse on the Earth's ionosphere using observational data and modeling, revealing effects on ionospheric layers and improving predictive models.

Contribution

It provides new insights into ionospheric responses during a solar eclipse and introduces corrections to existing ionospheric models for better accuracy.

Findings

Eclipse caused measurable changes in ionospheric critical frequencies.

Model corrections improved the performance of the regional ionospheric model.

The sporadic E layer's occurrence during the eclipse is influenced by observational timeframes.

Abstract

The effects of the solar eclipse of March 20, 2015 on different ionospheric layers were studied, using vertical ionospheric soundings from the ionosondes of Rome (41.8N, 12.5E), Gibilmanna (37.9N, 14.0E), and San Vito dei Normanni (40.6N, 18.0E). The responses of the critical frequencies were investigated during the solar eclipse, and the formulations used for their estimation were corrected taking into account the decreased solar irradiance. This effect was modeled as a Solar Obscuration Factor (SOF) and comparisons with experimental values were performed. A further study on the occurrence of the sporadic E layer during the eclipse is presented. When ionogram analysis is limited to 3 days before and 3 days after the eclipse, the appearance of the sporadic E layer seems to be related to the eclipse. However, when a longer range of days before and after the eclipse event are taken into account this phenomenon does not appear so clear. The behavior of a regional adaptive and assimilative 3D ionospheric model was also tested, assimilating plasma frequency profiles fp(h). Studying the behavior of the model in such unusual conditions enabled the introduction of corrections to the foE, foF1, and foF2 formulations, improving the performances of the model itself.