Global-scale data-model comparison of the July 2nd, 2019 total solar eclipse’s thermospheric effect

NASA’s Global-scale Observation of Limb and Disk’s (GOLD) instrument observed the July 2, 2019 total solar eclipse’s effect in the thermosphere from a geostationary orbit above South America. GOLD’s observations of compositional and neutral temperature changes induced by the eclipse are different from the modeled effects. Combined Thermospheric Ionospheric Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIE-GCM) and GLobal airglOW (GLOW) modeling of GOLD’s observation is relatively successful in reproducing morphologically changes. However, the model underestimates the compositional changes. GOLD observation show a ΣO/N₂ column density ratio enhancement of ~ 80 % near the totality, but the model predicts ~ 10 % enhancement. This indicates that there are inadequacies in current modeling capabilities for thermospheric changes during an eclipse. GOLD’s thermospheric measurements provide an important, new test of the models. We will present detailed data-model comparisons of measurements versus modeling results for the July 2^nd eclipse.