TEC evidence for near-equatorial energy deposition by 30 keV electrons in the topside ionosphere

Observations of energetic electrons (10 - 300 keV) by NOAA/POES and DMSP satellites at heights <1000 km during the period from 1999 to 2010 allowed finding abnormal intense fluxes of ~10⁶ - 10⁷ cm ^-2 s^-1 sr^-1 for quasi-trapped electrons appearing within the forbidden zone of low latitudes over the African, Indo-China, and Pacific regions. Extreme fluxes appeared often in the early morning and persisted for several hours during the maximum and recovery phase of geomagnetic storms. We analyzed nine storm time events when extreme electron fluxes first appeared in the Eastern Hemisphere, then drifted further eastward toward the South-Atlantic Anomaly. Using the electron spectra, we estimated the possible ionization effect produced by quasi-trapped electrons in the topside ionosphere. The estimated ionization was found to be large enough to satisfy observed storm time increases in the ionospheric total electron content (TEC) determined for the same spatial and temporal ranges from global ionospheric maps. Additionally, extreme fluxes of quasi-trapped electrons were accompanied by the significant elevation of the low-latitude F-layer obtained from COSMIC/FORMOSAT-3 radio occultation measurements. We suggest that the storm time ExB drift of energetic electrons from the inner radiation belt is an important driver of positive ionospheric storms within low-latitude and equatorial regions. Key Points Ionospheric ionization and energetic electrons were studied at low latitudes Positive ionospheric storms correlate well with electron enhancements ExB electron drift results in additional ionization of the ionosphere