Parameterization of the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program ionospheric electrostatic potentials by the interplanetary magnetic field strength and direction

Abstract

In this study we applied a linear regression analysis technique to the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) data and the ionospheric electrostatic potentials obtained from thermal ion drift measurements made by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites F8 and F10–F13 in 1993–1996. The ionospheric potentials are binned by every 1° of the corrected geomagnetic latitude and 0.5 hour of magnetic local time over both the northern and southern polar regions. The regression analyses are applied to the DMSP data in each bin in a similar way to what was done with the ground magnetometer data in the IZMIRAN Electrodynamic Model (IZMEM). This allowed us to parameterize the DMSP ionospheric potentials by the IMF strength and direction, as well as to recalibrate the IZMEM model against experimental satellite data. From the analysis it is calculated that the “background” cross‐polar potential drop estimated from DMSP data equals ∼33 kV if IMF ≈ 0. The calculated ionospheric potential responses to changes in the southward and northward IMF components are 11.5 kV/nT and −5.0 kV/nT, respectively.