Ionospheric spatial and temporal gradients for disturbance characterization

Global navigation satellite systems' performance is affected by the ionospheric signal delay. Ionospheric models are continuously enhanced to better describe ionospheric dynamics and reduce positioning errors. Changes in the geomagnetic field, influenced by the interplanetary magnetic field, reflect to the amount and distribution of the ionospheric ionization, quantified with the Total Electron Content (TEC). This paper characterizes the ionosphere over Europe during a geomagnetic storm. Combined information of temporal TEC change and spatial TEC gradients provides better overview of the ionospheric structures and enables clear insight in their dynamics and evolution.