The topside modeling: An ionospheric challenge.

Electron density values produced by the ESA Swarm mission were used to develop a new mid-latitude formulation of the NeQuick topside. Specifically, corrected values of the parameter $H_0$ were calculated and binned as a function of the F2-layer peak characteristics foF2 and hmF2. This allows to reliably model the topside in mid-latitude bands between $\pm 30^\circ$ and $\pm 60^\circ$ of geomagnetic latitude, once the F2-layer peak characteristics are known, either measured or modeled. The method was statistically evaluated by comparing topside TEC values obtained applying the new proposed NeQuick formulation with those measured by both COSMIC and Swarm satellites.