Space Weather Ionospheric Network Canada (SWINCan)

Space Weather Ionospheric Network Canada (SWINCan) will establish a pan-Canadian infrastructure of ground-based sensors that will provide state-of-the-art, real-time monitoring of the ionosphere spanning polar, auroral, and sub-auroral latitudes. SWINCan is an expansion and modernization of the Canadian High Arctic Ionospheric Network (CHAIN), one of the world’s largest networks for ionospheric research operated by the Radio and Space Physics Laboratory (RSPL) at the University of New Brunswick (UNB). SWINCan will deploy 100 specialized Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers and 10 modular ionospheric sounder (MODIS) systems across Canada, while enhancing the 28 GNSS and 10 ionosonde systems currently installed in the Canadian Arctic as part of CHAIN. SWINCan GNSS receivers are high-rate (100 Hz) ionospheric scintillation and total electron content (TEC) monitors (GISTMs) that will provide real-time data and enhance multi-scale observation of the ionospheric structure and dynamics. MODIS systems being developed by RSPL are next generation, low power high frequency (HF) systems that take advantage of the latest developments in software defined radio and signal processing technology to reduce power consumption and increase ionospheric measurement capabilities in harsh, remote environments such as the Canadian Arctic. SWINCan is designed to take advantage of the unique natural laboratory of the Canadian Arctic for the fundamental study of solar-terrestrial interactions, and will provide essential input for mitigation of space weather effects on modern technological systems such as GNSS, radio communication, and over-the-horizon-radar, services critical to social, military, science, and major economic sectors.