[P-EM10] Space Weather and Space Climate

[PEM10-P11] Ionospheric scintillation and geomagnetic disturbance caused by space hurricanes

*Sheng Lu¹, Zan-Yang Xing¹, Qing-He Zhang^2,1, Yong-Liang Zhang³, Hui-Gen Yang^1,4, Kjellmar Oksavik^5,6, L. R. Lyons⁷, Kazuo Shiokawa⁸, Yong Wang¹, Yu-Zhang Ma¹, Xiang-Yu Wang¹, Zhong-Xin Deng⁹, Tong Xu⁹, Duan Zhang², Guo-Jun Li¹⁰ (1.Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Optical Astronomy and Solar-Terrestrial Environment, Institute of Space Sciences, Shandong University, Weihai, China. , 2.State Key Laboratory of Space Weather, Center for Space Science and Applied Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China., 3.Applied Physics Laboratory, The Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Maryland, USA, 4.Polar Research Institute of China, Shanghai, China., 5.Department of Physics and Technology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway. , 6.Arctic Geophysics, University Centre in Svalbard, Longyearbyen, Norway., 7.Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of California, CA, Los Angeles, United States, 8.Institute for Space Earth Environmental Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan., 9.China Research Institute of Radiowave Propagation, Qingdao, China., 10.Lab of BLOS Reliable Information transmission, Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Chongqing, China.)

Keywords:Space hurricane, Ionospheric scintillation , Geomagnetic disturbance, Geomagnetically induced currents

A space hurricane is a large-scale, cyclone-shaped aurora with a rotating magnetic structure, caused by high-latitude magnetic reconnection. It typically appears near the magnetic poles during summer, creating a rapid energy transport channel that allows the solar wind to penetrate the Earth's magnetosphere under northward interplanetary magnetic field conditions. Therefore, this phenomenon plays a crucial role in influencing space weather, particularly impacting the polar cap ionosphere. In this study, we report the typical space hurricane event on 20^th August 2014 and its impact on the polar ionosphere in the Northern Hemisphere, observed using multiple instruments. Based on observations from the Eureka GNSS receiver and SWARM satellites, we found that GPS signals experience significant phase scintillation when passing near a space hurricane, which is attributed to the large density gradient in the region. Using data from the Greenland geomagnetic stations, we observed strong local geomagnetic disturbances and geomagnetically induced currents, which are driven by the upward field-aligned current around the space hurricane. Plasma observations from the DMSP and SWARM satellites revealed a strong electron density enhancement on the morning side of the space hurricane, which may drive by ionospheric convection and particle precipitation. This study provides the first comprehensive insight into the space weather effects of space hurricanes, offering crucial information for improving space weather forecasting and mitigating potential risks to satellite operations, communication systems, and power grids in high-latitude regions.