Performance evaluation for vertical TEC predictions over the East Africa and South America: IRI-2016 and IRI-2020 versions

0579933 - ÚFA 2025 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Marew, Habtamu - Agmas, A. - Mersha, T.
Performance evaluation for vertical TEC predictions over the East Africa and South America: IRI-2016 and IRI-2020 versions.
Advances in Space Research. Roč. 73, č. 1 (2024), s. 698-715. ISSN 0273-1177. E-ISSN 1879-1948
Grant - others:GA AV ČR(CZ) L100422251
Program: Program podpory perspektivních lidských zdrojů AV ČR
Institutional support: RVO:68378289
Keywords : IRI-2020 model * GPS * Magnetic storm * Validation * Ionospheric TEC
OECD category: Meteorology and atmospheric sciences
Impact factor: 2.6, year: 2022
Method of publishing: Limited access
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0273117723007913?dgcid=rss_sd_all

In this paper, we evaluate and report the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) model's vertical Total Electron Content (TEC) regional profile. Diurnal, monthly, seasonal, and storm-time characteristics of IRI estimates over the equatorial region's ionosphere are validated. We compared the vertical TEC derived from IRI-2020 and its predecessor, IRI-2016, with the GPS-TEC measurements. Results show that IRI (both versions) agrees with observed TEC during solar cycle maximum periods. Exceptionally, over Turkwel station, IRI-2020 produced double peak profiles on the March equinox, June solstice, and September equinox and overestimated with larger discrepancies. Over the other three stations, both IRI versions reproduced the seasonal averaged observed TEC with only slight time lags and discrepancies. During geomagnetically perturbed times, IRI-2020 better indicated positively enhanced GPS-TEC than IRI-2016. However, during the March 17, 2015 storm, IRI-2020 underestimated the storm-enhanced TEC over Bahir Dar station at all phases of the storm. IRI-2016 shows good performances for negative storms where lower TEC measurements are recorded.
Permanent Link: https://hdl.handle.net/11104/0348733