The improvements to the next-gen TIEGCM
The release of TIEGCM 3.0 in 2024 is a joint effort from researchers worldwide over the past decade. It improves the thermosphere-ionosphere simulation by introducing new physics or correcting existing deficiencies. However, three major weaknesses still exist and remain to be addressed: Electrodynamics, pole singularity, and ion density solver. The existing TIEGCM electrodynamics solver finds difficulty in resolving the mesoscale currents as well as the penetration electric field. The finite difference scheme is introducing large discretization error near the pole and causing numerical instabilities. The quasi-static ion velocity and temperature approximation becomes increasingly invalid during big storms and high altitudes. In this presentation, I will talk about the effort that have been made to resolve these three issues.
Haonan Wu obtained his bachelor's degree at the University of Science and Technology of China in 2017 and joined Clemson University in the same year. During his PhD, he worked on model developments including the nested-grid extension to TIEGCM and an optimal interpolation method for high-latitude electrodynamics. He was also the 2020 HAO Newkirk Fellowship recipient under the supervision of Wenbin Wang. He graduated in 2023 and joined NSF NCAR as an ASP postdoc. During his postdoc period at HAO, he continued the development of thermosphere-ionosphere models including TIEGCM and the electrodynamics solver.