Overview of the St. Patrick's day storm of 2015 using CTIPe model and GNSS data

Abstract

The complexity of the Sun-Earth system increases during magnetically disturbed conditions, caused by intense solar activity. One of the strongest geomagnetic storms of the solar cycle 24 occurred following a coronal mass ejection (CME) impact; it was the St. Patrick day storm on the 17 March 2015. As a result of these extreme conditions, ionospheric instabilities were produced, generating disturbances in the ionospheric density (ionospheric storms) that could derive into disruptions of communication and positioning. To explore how the ionosphere-thermosphere system responded to this event, we use the Coupled Thermosphere Ionosphere Plasmasphere electrodynamics global, three dimensional, non-linear physics-based model (CTIPe), that reproduces the changes in the thermospheric winds, composition and electron densities during the storm. To have a more complete understanding of the processes responsible of the observed effects, observational data derived from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and ground-based measurements are used to support the interpretation of the model outcome.