Work

Multi‐Frequency SuperDARN HF Radar Observations of the Ionospheric Response to the October 2023 Annular Solar Eclipse

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: An annular solar eclipse was visible on 14 October 2023 from 15:00–21:00 UT as its path traveled across North, Central, and South America. In this letter, we present the first multi‐frequency Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) observations of the bottomside ionospheric response to a solar eclipse using a novel experimental mode designed for the October 2023 annular eclipse. We compare our results from the mid‐latitude Christmas Valley East radar with measurements of the vertical electron density profile from the nearby Boulder Digisonde, finding the changes in 1‐ and 2‐hop ground scatter skip distance are well correlated with the ‐layer density response, which lags the peak obscuration by 30 min. Changes in the line‐of‐sight Doppler shifts are better aligned with the time derivative of eclipse obscuration.

Source: Geophysical Research Letters

DOI: 10.1029/2024gl112450

Authors: E. G. Thomas, S. G. Shepherd, B. S. R. Kunduri, D. R. Themens

Institutions: Dartmouth College, Virginia Tech, University of Birmingham

Language: English

Topic: Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,900