In this study, we present global climatological distributions of ionospheric plasma irregularities based on measurements by the Swarm satellites. These first global statistics obtained by direct, in situ measurements of plasma variations with Swarm confirm the presence of three main regions of strong ionospheric irregularities: the magnetic equator extending from postsunset to early morning, in the auroral ovals (from dayside cusp to nightside), and inside the polar caps. At equatorial latitudes, ionospheric irregularities form two bands of enhanced plasma fluctuations centered around ±10° magnetic latitude. Due to different plasma processes, ionospheric irregularities at high and low latitudes show different distributions. Though the averaged intensity of plasma irregularities is weaker at equatorial latitudes than at high latitudes, the occurrence rate of significant plasma fluctuations (corresponding to extreme events) is much higher at the equator than that at high latitudes. Equatorial irregularities display clear seasonal and longitudinal variations; that is, they are most prominent over South America during the December solstice and are located over Africa during the June solstice. The magnitude of ionospheric irregularities at all latitudes is strongly controlled by the solar activity. Ionospheric irregularities become significantly weaker after 2016 during the current declining phase of solar activity. The interplanetary magnetic field Bz modulates the occurrence of ionospheric irregularities at both high and low latitudes.

Our previous studies have shown the presence of daytime positive electron density disturb-ances during several days after the start of the recovery phase. The aim of this paper is to study after-effects of geomagnetic storms (after-storm effects), i.e. ionospher-ic effects observed on the 3–5th day after the beginning of the storm recovery phase. From numerical calcula-tions with the GSM TIP model, we have found the main mechanisms for the formation of the after-storm effects. Using Irkutsk (52° N, 104° E) and Kaliningrad (54° N, 20° E) ionosonde data, we have carried out a statistical analysis of daytime ionospheric responses to geomagnetic storms. As a result of the analysis, we obtained averaged ionospheric responses at the beginning of the storm recovery phase and for five consecutive days. The statistical analysis results received near the beginning of the recovery phase are in good agreement with the well-known ionospheric effects of geomagnetic storms obtained in previous studies. For the first time, the obtained statistics of iono-spheric responses observed on the 3–5th day after the beginning of the recovery phase allowed us to reveal the dependence of after-storm ionospheric effects on season, storm intensity, and ionosonde geomagnetic latitude. In addition, we for the first time present the interpretation of after-storm ionospheric effects from numerical simulation results.

Ionospheric plasma irregularities can be successfully studied with the Swarm satellites. Parameters derived from the in‐situ plasma measurements and from the topside ionosphere total electron content provide a comprehensive dataset for characterizing plasma structuring along the orbits of the Swarm satellites. The Ionospheric Plasma IRregularities (IPIR) data product summarizes these parameters and allows for systematic studies of ionospheric irregularities. IPIR has already been used in investigations of structuring and variability of ionospheric plasma. This report provides a detailed description of algorithms behind the IPIR data product and demonstrates its use for ionospheric studies.

We demonstrate the global response of the ionosphere to the geomagnetic super storm on 10–11 May 2024. The in situ observations from the Swarm spacecraft show a rapid depletion of plasma density in the dawn and dusk sectors following the storm. The in situ data are further complemented by the ground‐based total electron content maps. Both the in situ and the ground‐based observations show significant depletion of electron density during the super storm in regions above 50° magnetic latitude. The density depletion originates from a polar hole in the morning high latitude sector. It is suggested that the strong convection speed under substantial solar wind forcing leads to chemical composition changes and rapid recombination in the ionosphere. The region of depleted plasma density is not confined to the polar cap but expands to auroral and mid‐latitude regions. The depleted plasma density lasts for about 3 days before it recovers to the pre‐storm levels.

Swarm is the first European Space Agency (ESA) constellation mission for Earth Observation. Three identical Swarm satellites were launched into near-polar orbits on 22 November 2013. Each satellite hosts a range of instruments, including a Langmuir probe, GPS receivers, and magnetometers, from which the ionospheric plasma can be sampled and current systems inferred. In March 2018, the CASSIOPE/e-POP mission was formally integrated into the Swarm mission through ESA’s Earthnet Third Party Mission Programme. Collectively the instruments on the Swarm satellites enable detailed studies of ionospheric plasma, together with the variability of this plasma in space and in time. This allows the driving processes to be determined and understood. The purpose of this paper is to review ionospheric results from the first seven years of the Swarm mission and to discuss scientific challenges for future work in this field.

Geomagnetic storm ionospheric effects observed at different latitudes and longitudes on September 26 and 28–30, 2011, are interpreted with the GSM TIP model. It has been justified that the results of...