Coupled Thermosphere-Ionosphere Tongue-Like Structure During the Recovery Phase of the Geomagnetic Storm on 12 May 2021

Abstract

A coupled thermosphere-ionosphere tongue-like structure was observed in the daytime at middle latitudes by ground-based Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) observations during the storm recovery phase on 12 May 2021. The storm-induced variations in total electron content (TEC) and the column density ratio of O to N₂ (∑O/N₂) both showed a relatively narrow region of enhancement in latitude, originating from low latitudes and surrounded by depleted regions. The concurrent neutral temperature observations also showed a tongue-like decrease surrounded by temperature enhancements. The Thermosphere-Ionosphere-Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIEGCM) qualitatively reproduced the observed thermosphere-ionosphere structure. The simulations indicate that the formation of the TEC tongue-like structure was dominated by the enhanced ΣO/N₂. Unlike the previously reported tongue of ionization (TOI) driven by E × B drifts, the tongue-like structure occurred at relatively lower geomagnetic latitudes (∼30$°$–∼65$°$) and had a smaller magnitude of enhancement. This is the first time that the concurrent tongue-like structures in thermospheric composition, temperature and electron density are observed, which advances the understanding of thermosphere-ionosphere coupling.