High resolution mapping of TEC perturbations with the GSI GPS network over Japan

Two-dimensional total electron content (TEC) perturbations over Japan are mapped with the Geographical Survey Institute (GSI) GPS network, GEONET (GPS Earth Observation Network). Its spatial resolution is 0.15 degrees latitude x 0.15 degrees longitude and temporal resolution is 30 seconds. Two-dimensional TEC observations with these high resolutions revealed spatial structures and temporal evolutions of traveling ionospheric disturbances (TIDs) in the nighttime mid-latitude ionosphere on July 03, 1997. A preliminary result of the TEC perturbation mapping indicates that it would be a strong tool to investigate the ionospheric structures in detail. Coordinated observations with other ionospheric observation techniques, such as incoherent scatter (IS) radars, airglow imagers, and ionosondes, are needed to clarify the vertical structure of the ionosphere.