Low solar activity variability and IRI 2007 predictability of equatorial Africa GPS TEC

Diurnal, seasonal and latitudinal variations of Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) over the equatorial region of the African continent and a comparison with IRI-2007 derived TEC (IRI-TEC), using all three options (namely; NeQuick, IRI01-corr and IRI-2001), are presented in this paper. The variability and comparison are presented for 2009, a year of low solar activity, using data from thirteen Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers. VTEC values were grouped into four seasons namely March Equinox (February, March, April), June Solstice (May, June, July), September Equinox (August, September, October), and December Solstice (November, December, January). VTEC generally increases from 06h00 LT and reaches its maximum value at approximately 15h00–17h00 LT during all seasons and at all locations. The NeQuick and IRI01-corr options of the IRI model predict reasonably well the observed diurnal and seasonal variation patterns of VTEC values. However, the IRI-2001 option gave a relatively poor prediction when compared with the other options. The post-midnight and post-sunset deviations between modeled and observed VTEC could arise because NmF2 or the shape of the electron density profile, or both, are not well predicted by the model; hence some improvements are still required in order to obtain improved predictions of TEC over the equatorial region of the Africa sector.     

Quasi-biennial oscillation in GPS VTEC measurements

The quasi-biennial oscillation, QBO, a well known periodicity in the equatorial stratospheric zonal winds, is also found in ionospheric parameters and in solar and geomagnetic activity indices. Many authors speculated about the link between the QBO in solar and geomagnetic activity and the QBO in atmospheric parameters. In this work we analyze the presence of the QBO in the ionosphere using the Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) values obtained from Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) measurements during the period 1999–2012. In particular, we used IONEX files, i.e. the International GNSS Service (IGS) ionospheric products. IONEX provide VTEC values around the world at 2-h intervals. From these data we compute global and zonal averages of VTEC at different local times at mid and equatorial geomagnetic latitudes. VTEC and Extreme Ultra Violet (EUV) solar flux time series are analyzed using a wavelet multi resolution analysis. In all cases the QBO is detected among other expected periodicities.     

Using GPS-TEC data to calibrate VTEC computed with the IRI model over Nigeria

This paper presents the development of a Total Electron Content (TEC) map for the Nigerian ionosphere. In this work, TEC measurements obtained from the AFRL-SCINDA GPS (Air Force Research Laboratory-Scintillation Network Decision Aid, Global Positioning System) equipment installed at Nsukka (6.87°N, 7.38°E) are used to adapt the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) model for the Nigerian Ionosphere. The map is being developed as a computer program (implemented in the MATLAB programming language) that shows spatial and temporal representations of TEC for the Nigerian ionosphere. The method is aimed at showing how the IRI model can be used to estimate VTEC over wide areas by incorporating GPS measurements. This method is validated by using GPS VTEC data collected from a station in Ilorin (8.50°N, 4.55°E).     

NeQuick 2 and IRI Plas VTEC predictions for low latitude and South American sector

Using vertical total electron content (VTEC) measurements obtained from GPS satellite signals the capability of the NeQuick 2 and IRI Plas models to predict VTEC over the low latitude and South American sector is analyzed. In the present work both models were used to calculate VTEC up to the height of GPS satellites. Also, comparisons between the performance of IRI Plas and IRI 2007 have been done. The data correspond to June solstice and September equinox 1999 (high solar activity) and they were obtained at nine stations. The considered latitude range extends from 18.4°N to ?64.7°N and the longitude ranges from 281.3°E to 295.9°E in the South American sector. The greatest discrepancies among model predictions and the measured VTEC are obtained at low latitudes stations placed in the equatorial anomaly region. Underestimations as strong as 40?TECU [1?TECU?=?10¹⁶?m^?2] can be observed at BOGT station for September equinox, when NeQuick2 model is used. The obtained results also show that: (a) for June solstice, in general the performance of IRI Plas for low latitude stations is better than that of NeQuick2 and, vice versa, for highest latitudes the performance of NeQuick2 is better than that of IRI Plas. For the stations TUCU and SANT both models have good performance; (b) for September equinox the performances of the models do not follow a clearly defined pattern as in the other season. However, it can be seen that for the region placed between the Northern peak and the valley of the equatorial anomaly, in general, the performance of IRI Plas is better than that of NeQuick2 for hours of maximum ionization. From TUCU to the South, the best TEC predictions are given by NeQuick2.The source of the observed deviations of the models has been explored in terms of CCIR foF2 determination in the available ionosonde stations in the region. Discrepancies can be also related to an unrealistic shape of the vertical electron density profile and or an erroneous prediction of the plasmaspheric contribution to the vertical total electron content. Moreover, the results of this study could be suggesting that in the case of NeQuick, the underestimation trend could be due to the lack of a proper plasmaspheric model in its topside representation. In contrast, the plasmaspheric model included in IRI, leads to clear overestimations of GPS derived TEC.     

Response of the ionospheric F-region in the Brazilian sector during the super geomagnetic storm in April 2000 observed by GPS

The response of the ionospheric F-region in the equatorial and low latitude regions in the Brazilian sector during the super geomagnetic storm on 06–07 April 2000 has been studied in the present investigation. The geomagnetic storm reached a minimum D_st of −288 nT at 0100 UT on 07 April. In this paper, we present vertical total electron content (VTEC) and phase fluctuations (in TECU/min) from GPS observations obtained at Imperatriz (5.5°S, 47.5°W; IMPZ), Brasília (15.9°S, 47.9°W; BRAZ), Presidente Prudente (22.12°S, 51.4°W; UEPP), and Porto Alegre (30.1°S, 51.1°W; POAL) during the period 05–08 April. Also, several GPS-based TEC maps are presented from the global GPS network, showing widespread and drastic TEC changes during the different phases of the geomagnetic storm. In addition, ion density measurements on-board the satellite Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F15 orbiting at an altitude of 840 km and the first Republic of China satellite (ROCSAT-1) orbiting at an altitude of 600 km are presented. The observations indicate that one of the orbits of the DMSP satellite is fairly close to the 4 GPS stations and both the DMSP F15 ion-density plots and the phase fluctuations from GPS observations show no ionospheric irregularities in the Brazilian sector before 2358 UT on the night of 06–07 April 2000. During the fast decrease of D_st on 06 April, there is a prompt penetration of electric field of magnetospheric origin resulting in decrease of VTEC at IMPZ, an equatorial station and large increase in VTEC at POAL, a low latitude station. This resulted in strong phase fluctuations on the night of 06–07 April, up to POAL. During the daytime on 07 April during the recovery phase, the VTEC observations show positive ionospheric storm at all the GPS stations, from IMPZ to POAL, and the effect increasing from IMPZ to POAL. This is possibly linked to the equatorward directed meridional wind. During the daytime on 08 April (the recovery phase continues), the VTEC observations show very small negative ionospheric storm at IMPZ but the positive ionospheric storm effect is observed from BRAZ to POAL possibly linked to enhancement of the equatorial ionospheric anomaly.     

IRI 2001/90 TEC predictions over a low latitude station

Total electron content (TEC) over Tucumán (26.9°S, 294.6°W) measured with Faraday technique during the high solar activity year 1982, is used to check IRI 2001 TEC predictions at the southern crest of the equatorial anomaly region. Comparisons with IRI 90 are also made. The results show that in general IRI overestimates TEC values around the daily minimum and underestimates it the remaining hours. Better predictions are obtained using ground ionosonde measurements as input coefficients in the IRI model. The results suggest that for hours of maximum TEC values the electron density profile is broader than that assumed by the model. The main reason for the disagreement would be the IRI shape of the electron density profile.     

Testing the improvement of performance of the IRI model in the estimation of TEC over the mid-latitude American regions

This paper mainly discusses the improvement of performance of the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) model in estimating the variation of the Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) over the mid latitude American regions during the relatively low (2008–2010) and relatively high (2012) solar activity years. This has been conducted employing the VTEC values obtained from the dual frequency ground based Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers located at Mineral Area Community College, MACC (37.85°N, 269.52°W) and Mississippi County Airport, MAIR (36.85°N, 270.64°W), and the latest versions of the IRI online model (IRI 2007, IRI 2012 and IRI 2016). The study mainly focuses to compare the trend of variability of the monthly and seasonal modeled VTEC values (IRI 2007 VTEC, IRI 2012 VTEC and IRI 2016 VTEC) with the corresponding measured VTEC values (GPS VTEC). The overall results show that the IRI VTEC values (almost in all versions of the model) are generally smaller than the GPS VTEC except after about 15:00 UT (09:00 LT) in the December solstice when the Sun shifts to the high solar activity. On the contrary, overestimations of the VTEC values by the model are observed in traversing from the low solar activity (2008) to high solar activity (2012) phase, especially after about 15:00 UT (09::00 LT) with the IRI 2016 version showing the highest. In general, the IRI 2007 and IRI 2012 versions show similar monthly and seasonal underestimations or overestimations showing that the two versions have almost similar performance. The IRI 2016 version is generally better in capturing both the diurnal and arithmetic mean GPS VTEC values with some exceptional months and seasons as compared to those of the IRI 2007 and IRI 2012 versions.     

Investigation of ionospheric response to two moderate geomagnetic storms using GPS–TEC measurements in the South American and African sectors during the ascending phase of solar cycle 24

The responses of the ionospheric F region using GPS–TEC measurements during two moderate geomagnetic storms at equatorial, low-, and mid-latitude regions over the South American and African sectors in May 2010, during the ascending phase of solar cycle 24, are investigated. The first moderate geomagnetic storm studied reached a minimum Dst value of −64 nT at 1500 UT on 02 May 2010 and the second moderate geomagnetic storm reached a minimum Dst value of −85 nT at 1400 UT on 29 May 2010. In this paper, we present vertical total electron content (VTEC) and phase fluctuations (in TECU/min) from Global Positioning System (GPS) observations from the equatorial to mid-latitude regions in the South American and African sectors. Our results obtained during these two moderate geomagnetic storms from both sectors show significant positive ionospheric storms during daytime hours at the equatorial, low-, and mid-latitude regions during the main and recovery phases of the storms. The thermospheric wind circulation change towards the equator is a strong indicator that suggests an important mechanism is responsible for these positive phases at these regions. A pre-storm event that was observed in the African sector from low- to the mid-latitude regions on 01 May 2010 was absent in the South American sector. This study also showed that there was no generation or suppression of ionospheric irregularities by storm events. Therefore, knowledge about the suppression and generation of ionospheric irregularities during moderate geomagnetic storms is still unclear.     

First results of operational ionospheric dynamics prediction for the Brazilian Space Weather program

It is shown the development and preliminary results of operational ionosphere dynamics prediction system for the Brazilian Space Weather program. The system is based on the Sheffield University Plasmasphere–Ionosphere Model (SUPIM), a physics-based model computer code describing the distribution of ionization within the Earth mid to equatorial latitude ionosphere and plasmasphere, during geomagnetically quiet periods. The model outputs are given in a 2-dimensional plane aligned with Earth magnetic field lines, with fixed magnetic longitude coordinate. The code was adapted to provide the output in geographical coordinates. It was made referring to the Earth’s magnetic field as an eccentric dipole, using the approximation based on International Geomagnetic Reference Field (IGRF-11). During the system operation, several simulation runs are performed at different longitudes. The original code would not be able to run all simulations serially in reasonable time. So, a parallel version for the code was developed for enhancing the performance. After preliminary tests, it was frequently observed code instability, when negative ion temperatures or concentrations prevented the code from continuing its processing. After a detailed analysis, it was verified that most of these problems occurred due to concentration estimation of simulation points located at high altitudes, typically over 4000 km of altitude. In order to force convergence, an artificial exponential decay for ion–neutral collisional frequency was used above mentioned altitudes. This approach shown no significant difference from original code output, but improved substantially the code stability. In order to make operational system even more stable, the initial altitude and initial ion concentration values used on exponential decay equation are changed when convergence is not achieved, within pre-defined values. When all code runs end, the longitude of every point is then compared with its original reference station longitude, and differences are compensated by changing the simulation point time slot, in a temporal adjustment optimization. Then, an approximate neighbor searching technique was developed to obtain the ion concentration values in a regularly spaced grid, using inverse distance weighting (IDW) interpolation. A 3D grid containing ion and electron concentrations is generated for every hour of simulated day. Its spatial resolution is 1° of latitude per 1° of longitude per 10 km of altitude. The vertical total electron content (VTEC) is calculated from the grid, and plotted in a geographic map. An important feature that was implemented in the system is the capacity of combining observational data and simulation outputs to obtain more appropriate initial conditions to the ionosphere prediction. Newtonian relaxation method was used for this data assimilation process, where ionosonde data from four different locations in South America was used to improve the system accuracy. The whole process runs every day and predicts the VTEC values for South America region with almost 24 h ahead.     

A MARS-based method for estimating regional 2-D ionospheric VTEC and receiver differential code bias

The geometry-free linear combination of dual-frequency GNSS reference station ground observations are currently used to build the Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) model of the ionosphere. As it is known, besides ionospheric delays, there are differential code bias (DCB) of satellite (SDCB) and receiver (RDCB) in the geometry-free observation equation. The SDCB can be obtained using the International GNSS Service (IGS) analysis centers, but the RDCB for regional and local network receivers are not provided. Therefore, estimating the RDCB and VTEC model accurately and simultaneously is a critical factor investigated by researchers. This study uses Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS) to estimate the VTEC approximate model and then substitutes this model in the observation equation to form the normal equation. The least squares method is used to solve the RDCB and VTEC model together. The research findings show that this method has good modeling effectiveness and the estimated RDCB has good reliability. The estimated VTEC model applied to GPS single-frequency precise point positioning has better positioning accuracy in comparison to the IGS global ionosphere map (GIM).     

Diurnal and seasonal variation of F2-layer ionospheric parameters at equatorial ionization anomaly crest region and their comparison with IRI-2001

Diurnal and seasonal variations of critical frequency of ionospheric F2-region ‘foF2’ and the height of peak density ‘hmF2’ are studied using modern digital ionosonde observations of equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) crest region, Bhopal (23.2°N, 77.6°E, dip 18.5°N), during solar minimum period 2007. Median values of these parameters are obtained at each hour using manually scaled data during different seasons and compared with the International Reference Ionosphere-2001 model predictions. The observations suggest that on seasonal basis, the highest values of foF2 are observed during equinox months, whereas highest values of hmF2 are obtained in summer and lowest values of both foF2 and hmF2 are observed during winter. The observed median and IRI predicted values of foF2 and hmF2 are analyzed with upper and lower bound of inter-quartile range (IQR) and it is find out that the observed median values are well inside the inter-quartile range during the period of 2007. Comparison of the recorded foF2 and hmF2 values with the IRI-2001 output reveals that IRI predicted values exhibit better agreement with hmF2 as compared to foF2. In general, the IRI model predictions show some agreement with the observations during the year 2007. Therefore it is still necessary to implement improvements in order to obtain better predictions for EIA regions.     

Non-parametric regional VTEC modeling with Multivariate Adaptive Regression B-Splines

In this work Multivariate Adaptive Regression B-Splines (BMARS) is applied to regional spatio-temporal mapping of the Vertical Total Electron Content (VTEC) using ground based Global Positioning System (GPS) observations. BMARS is a non-parametric regression technique that utilizes compactly supported tensor product B-splines as basis functions, which are automatically obtained from the observations. The algorithm uses a scale-by-scale model building strategy that searches for B-splines at each scale fitting adequately to the data and provides smoother approximations than the original Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS). It is capable to process high dimensional problems with large amounts of data and can easily be parallelized. The real test data is collected from 32 ground based GPS stations located in North America. The results are compared numerically and visually with both the regional VTEC modeling generated via original MARS using piecewise-linear basis functions and another regional VTEC modeling based on B-splines.     

一种基于系数择优的低阶球谐电离层延迟改正模型

针对单频接收机的电离层延迟改正问题, 提出了一种基于系数择优的低阶球谐电离层延迟改正模型. 按照电离层延迟改正模型参数择优问题的描述, 明确参数优化的目标和约束条件, 根据参数选择可编码的特点, 提出了利用遗传算法进行参数择优的方法及步骤. 以欧洲定轨中心(CODE)提供的电离层数据作为参考标准, 对参数择优模型、 低阶球谐模型和Klobuchar模型模拟的区域电离层VTEC精度进行了比较分析. 结果表明, 较之相同系数个数的低阶球谐模型, 参数择优模型精度平均改进了1～2TECU, 而且比Klobuchar模型及低阶球谐模型能更好地反映电离层的周日变化及纬度变化特征.      

Equatorial M(3000)F2 estimation of F2-layer models peak heights during low solar activity

M(3000)F2 estimation of h_mF2 based on four different formulated models viz: (1) Shimazaki (1955) (2) Bradley and Dudeney (1973), (3) Dudeney (1974) and (4) Bilitza et al. (1979) at an equatorial station in West Africa during low solar activity period (1995) are used to validate its conformity with observed and International Reference Ionosphere (IRI) model. Local time analyses of data from fifteen (15) selected days during the January and July solstices and April and October equinoxes are used. The results obtained show that the M(3000)F2 estimation of h_mF2 from the ionosonde-measured values using the Ionospheric Prediction Service (IPS-42) sounder compared to the observed values which were deduced using an algorithm from scaled virtual heights of quiet day ionograms are highly correlated with Bilitza model. International Reference Ionosphere (IRI 2007) model for the equatorial region also agrees with the formulation developed by Bilitza et al. (1979) for the four different seasons of the year. h_mF2 is highest (425 km) in summer (June solstice) season and lowest (386 km) in autumn (September equinox) season with daytimes peaks occurring at 1100–1200 LT during the solstices and at 1000 LT during the equinoxes respectively. Also, the post-sunset peaks are highest (362 km) at the spring (March equinox) and lowest (308 km) at the summer (June solstice) both occurring between 1800 and 2000 LT.     

GPS电离层反演方法研究及其在地震方面的应用

利用地基GPS数据计算了电离层单球壳模型穿刺点上的垂向总电子含量(VTEC), 根据VTEC和卫星及测站接收机的差分码间偏差DCB的不同时变特性采用了复弧法, 将VTEC作为局部变量(每30 min 一组, 可调), DCB作为一天的全局量进行解算. 在解算的过程中, 充分考虑VTEC的空间分布特性, 利用变异函数通过Kriging插值法建立电离层VTEC的二维格网模型, 并给出了卫星和接收机的差分码间偏差DCB. 通过与IGS结果的比较, 发现其结果可靠, 且时空分辨率和稳定性都有较大提高. 同时, 基于简化的三元样条插值基函数对电离层电子密度进行三维展开, 利用乘型代数重建技术MART算法构建了同批数据的四维层析成像结果, 获得了电离层电子密 度的四维分布. 其结果与CHAMP无线电掩星结果非常一致. 利用上面两种算法又分别对2008年5月长江三角洲地区地基GPS数据进行处理, 简要分析了该时段该地区上空电离层总电子含量和电子密度的变化情况及其对汶川地震的响应.      

Negative VTEC with spherical harmonic expansion model under different solar activity conditions

The Earth’s ionosphere can be described by a spherical harmonic (SH) expansion up to a specific degree. However, there exist negative vertical total electron content (VTEC) values in the global ionosphere map (GIM) with the SH expansion model. In this contribution, we specifically investigated the negative VTEC values that are induced by the SH expansion model and validated the performance of the inequality-constrained least squares (ICLS) method in eliminating the negative VTEC values. The GPS data from 2004 to 2017 was selected to cover one solar cycle and the experiments under different solar activity conditions were analyzed. The results in our work show that the occurrence of the negative VTEC values is attributed to the deficiency of the SH expansion model when the VTEC itself is small instead of the unevenly distribution of the GNSS stations. The negative VTEC values appear periodically in the temporal domain, showing apparently one year and half year periods. During one year, two peaks in June and December can be observed in the time series of the negative VTEC values. The number of negative VTEC values in June is obvious larger than that in December. During one solar cycle, the number of negative VTEC values under quiet solar activity condition is obvious larger than that under strong solar activity condition. In the spatial domain, the appearance of the negative VTEC values is strongly related with the movement of the subsolar point. In the latitude of the subsolar point has the largest magnitude, the negative values will appear on the opposite hemisphere and the further from the subsolar point the more negative values. The maximum number of the negative VTEC values in the southern hemisphere appears in June, while the peak value in the northern hemisphere appears in December. The maximum number of negative VTEC values in the southern hemisphere is generally larger than that in the northern hemisphere. In addition, the negative VTEC values are distributed both at middle latitude and high latitude in the southern hemisphere, while they are mainly distributed at high latitude in the northern hemisphere. When the ICLS method is used, the negative VTEC values can be eliminated efficiently and it has nearly no influence on the positive VTEC values. The ICLS method can also improve the receiver’s differential code bias (DCB) and significantly decrease the unreasonable negative slant TEC (STEC) values along the lines of sight. Using the final GIM product of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPLG) as a reference, the root mean square (RMS) of the ICLS solution shows maximum 25%, 20% and 45% improvement relative to the least squares (LS) solution at northern high latitude, southern middle latitude and southern high latitude, respectively.     

Vertical TEC variations and model during low solar activity at a low latitude station,Xiamen

GPS-derived vertical TEC recorded at Xiamen (24.5°N, 118.1°E, geomagnetic latitude 13.2°N), China, during year 2006 is analyzed for the first time and compared to that predicted by ionosphere model SPIM recommend by ISO. A manifest seasonal anomaly is found with the high value during equinoctial season and low value during summer and winter season. Relative standard deviation for VTEC shows high value at around midnight and before sunrise. The correlation analysis exhibits that the variation of VTEC has a very weak relation with geomagnetic and solar activities (Dst, AP, SSN and F10.7). Comparative results reveal that the SPIM overestimates the observed VTEC at most of the time.     

An Artificial Neural Network based approach for estimation of rain intensity from spectral moments of a Doppler Weather Radar

By using a Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) at Shriharikota (13.66°N & 80.23°E), an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) based technique is proposed to improve the accuracy of rain intensity estimation. Three spectral moments of a Doppler spectra are utilized as an input data to an ANN. Rain intensity, as measured by the tipping bucket rain gauges around the DWR station, are considered as a target values for the given inputs. Rain intensity as estimated by the developed ANN model is validated by the rain gauges measurements. With the help of a developed technique, reasonable improvement in the estimation of rain intensity is observed. By using the developed technique, root mean square error and bias are reduced in the range of 34–18% and 17–3% respectively, compared to Z–R approach.     

SHAKING: Adjusted spherical harmonics adding KrigING method for near real-time ionospheric modeling with multi-GNSS observations

Precise positioning based on Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) technique requires high accuracy ionospheric total electron content (TEC) correction models to account for the ionospheric path delay errors. We present an adjusted Spherical Harmonics Adding KrigING method (SHAKING) approach for regional ionospheric vertical TEC (VTEC) modeling in real time. In the proposed SHAKING method, the VTEC information over the sparse observation data area is extrapolated by the Adjusted Spherical Harmonic (ASH) function, and the boundary distortion in regional VTEC modeling is corrected by the stochastic VTEC estimated using Kriging interpolation. Using real-time GPS, GLONASS and BDS-2/3 data streams of the Crust Movement Observation Network of China (CMONOC), the SHAKING-based regional ionospheric VTEC maps are re-constructed over China and its boundary regions. Compared to GNSS VTECs derived from the independent stations, the quality of SHAKING solution improves by 13–31% and 6–33% with respect to the ASH-only solution during high and low geomagnetic periods, respectively. Compared to the inverse distance weighting (IDW) generated result, significant quality improved of SHAKING-based VTEC maps is also observed, especially over the edge areas with an improvement of 60–80%. Overall, the proposed SHAKING method exhibits notable advantage over the existing regional VTEC modeling techniques, which can be used for regional TEC modeling and associated high-precision positioning applications.     

Seasonal variability of GPS-VTEC and model during low solar activity period (2006–2007) near the equatorial ionization anomaly crest location in Chinese zone

Variability of vertical TEC recorded at Fuzhou (26.1°N, 119.3°E, geomagnetic latitude 14.4°N), Xiamen (24.5°N, 118.1°E, geomagnetic latitude 13.2°N), Nanning (22.8°N, 108.3°E, geomagnetic latitude 11.4°N), China, during the low solar activity in 2006–2007 have been analyzed and discussed. Remarkable seasonal anomaly was found over three stations with the highest value during spring and the lowest value during summer. The relative standard deviation of VTEC is over 20% all the time, with steady and smooth variation during daytime while it has a large fluctuation during nighttime. The biggest correlation coefficient was found in the VTEC-sunspot pair with a value of over 0.5. It seems that solar activity has a better correlation ship than geomagnetic activity with the variation of VTEC and better correlations are found with more long-term data when comparing our previous study. The results of comparing observation with model prediction in three sites reveal again that the SPIM model overestimates the measured VTEC in the low latitude area.