Correction of IRI-Plas and NeQuick Empirical Ionospheric Models at High Latitudes Using Data from the Remote Receivers of Global Navigation Satellite System Signals

Abstract

Correction of ionospheric models using experimental data is a current problem in accounting for ionospheric effects on the operation of radio engineering systems. In this paper, two approaches for correcting International Reference Ionosphere (IRI)-Plas and NeQuick ionospheric empirical models at high latitudes are tested using data from the receivers of global navigation satellite systems (GNSSs) located at some distance (~200–400 km) from what is considered the ionospheric region. The essence of these approaches is to minimize the root-mean-square deviation between the absolute slant total electron content (TEC) obtained from GNSS data and the modeled TEC for the same probe beam geometry (azimuth and elevation angle). The model correction results are compared using two GNSS receivers, located in Lovozero and Vardø, respectively, based on the data from the vertical sounding station in Sodankylä. Data for 2014 (average solar activity) are used. It is shown that at high latitudes the proposed correction approaches reduce error in the sunlit ionosphere and increase it in the dark ionosphere.