A Data Assimilation Ionospheric Model by assimilating the FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC observation with the Thermosphere-Ionosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model

The Thermosphere-Ionosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIE-GCM 1.95) developed by NCAR/HAO is a self-consistently electrodynamics coupled thermosphere and ionosphere model. In this study, we propose a data assimilation (DA) process, which assimilate the daytime and low-latitude FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC (F3/C) occultation total electron contents (OTEC) data with TIE-GCM to obtain the optimal modeling parameters, such as diurnal and semi-diurnal tides. The DA results of OTEC and electron density are first discussed. The physical variables of the ionosphere (for examples, electron density and neutral wind) are also compared with other observations and models to examine the validity of DA.