Structure of the High-Latitude Noon Ionosphere of the Southern Hemisphere
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Due to the CHAMP satellite's altitude, it is not possible to examine all parts of the ionosphere. Therefore I suggest using additional data sources to examine the winter noon ionosphere of the southern hemisphere.
Author Response
Due to the CHAMP satellite's altitude, it is not possible to examine all parts of the ionosphere. Therefore I suggest using additional data sources to examine the winter noon ionosphere of the southern hemisphere.
The CHAMP satellite operated from 2000 to 2010. He made about 50,000 revolutions around the Earth, i.e. it flew more than 200,000 passes in the high-latitude ionosphere of both hemispheres. The satellite's data array covers high and low solar activity, all seasons, all local time hours, all longitudes and latitudes up to 87°. A large array of satellite data makes it possible to solve a large number of different tasks, including a detailed analysis of the structure of the high latitude ionosphere in terms of electron density. The CHAMP flew at latitudes near the maximum of the F2 layer, which can also be considered the advantage of this satellite. It's hard to wish for more. The disadvantage of the satellite in solving this problem is that it did not receive simultaneous data on particle precipitation. Therefore, we additionally had to use data from the DMSP series satellites, which measured the fluxes of precipitating particles. But the DMSP satellites also have a big disadvantage, their orbits are located in sectors of 06-18 LT or 09-21 LT, which does not allow exploring the noon ionosphere. In addition, on the website https://dmsp.bc.edu/ DMSP data are presented as plots in MLT terms without longitudes data, which makes it even more difficult to use them. The data from other satellites has its drawbacks. The ISIS 1 and 2 satellites received data only at the longitudes of America and Asia. The AE-C had an inclination of only 68°. The DE 1 and 2 mission satellites observed an auroral oval using Fabry-Perot interferometer and measured the precipitation of auroral particles. But on the website https://omniweb.gsfc.nasa.gov/ftpbrowser/ae_de2.html there is only Ne data that cannot be used. The HILAT satellite [41] was adjusted for normal operation over the north pole. Moreover, the Langmuir probe instrument failed on launch, and the Auroral imager failed on 23 July 83 (after launch on 27 June 83). This is the whole list. So I don't see the possibility of using any additional data.
Reviewer 2 Report
This is a well-written paper to investigate different structures of the winter noon ionosphere of the southern hemisphere. The results show that the situation in the winter noon ionosphere of the southern hemisphere shows significant dependence on longitudes. I recommend the paper to be published by Remote Sensing after minor revisions. The specific comments are listed below:
1. Lines 30-33: Both Key point #1 and #2 just give introduction information without statements regarding the conclusions or importance of this study. It is better to emphasize some novelty of this paper in these points.
2. Line 173, Line 343: Compared with other figures, Figure 1 and Figure 3 look unclear and the font type is weird.
3. Usually, the diffuse auroral precipitation is related with chorus waves or ECH waves in the magnetosphere. However, the two wave modes are rarely observed in the noon sector. What’s the driven mechanism of the diffuse auroral precipitation studied in this study?
Author Response
See attachment
Author Response File: 
Author Response.doc
Reviewer 3 Report
This paper presents an interesting analysis of ionospheric structure over the southern high-latitude region.
quality of Figures needs to be improved, particularly the readability (bold) of figure labels, axis labels, legends, etc.
Author Response
I appreciate the participation of the reviewers in improving my paper.
Many thanks in advance for your help.
Regards,
Alexander Karpachev
Reviewer 3
|
|
Yes |
Can be improved |
Must be improved |
Not applicable |
|
Does the introduction provide sufficient background and include all relevant references? |
( ) |
(x) |
( ) |
( ) |
|
Are all the cited references relevant to the research? |
( ) |
(x) |
( ) |
( ) |
|
Is the research design appropriate? |
( ) |
(x) |
( ) |
( ) |
|
Are the methods adequately described? |
( ) |
(x) |
( ) |
( ) |
|
Are the results clearly presented? |
( ) |
(x) |
( ) |
( ) |
|
Are the conclusions supported by the results? |
( ) |
(x) |
( ) |
( ) |
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
This paper presents an interesting analysis of ionospheric structure over the southern high-latitude region.
quality of Figures needs to be improved, particularly the readability (bold) of figure labels, axis labels, legends, etc.
The DMSP data in Figures 1 and 3 were given as on the website https://dmsp.bc.edu/, i.e. these are the originals. I had to completely redo them and add a scale for electron and ion fluxes from the description of the device (on the right).
The article has been improved in the following positions. The wording of the Abstract has been clarified, the Introduction has been corrected and supplemented, several relevant references have been added. The design of the manuscript has been improved, especially with regard to Figures. The methods of solving the problem are described more adequately. The conclusions are also formulated more precisely.
Author Response File: Author Response.doc
Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
Although it is stated that CHAMP flew at latitudes near the maximum of the F2 layer, its altitude is 454 km. Therefore besides the plasmasphere, it does not even include all parts of the Ionosphere. If alternative data sources cannot be handled due to time zone, the altitude deficiency of CHAMP for ionospheric research should be stated clearly in the paper.
Author Response
See attachment, please
Author Response File: Author Response.doc
