Statistical Analysis of Saturation effect in GIM TEC Response to Solar Activity

This study investigates the saturation effect in the ionospheric total electron content (TEC) in the global ionosphere, particularly in response to solar activity F10.7 index and the 81-day average F10.7 proxy. Using data from the ascending and decending phase of Solar Cycle 23 between 1998 and 2009. The analysis revealed that TEC saturation is more prevalent at lower latitudes, especially within the equatorial ionization anomaly (EIA) region, compared to mid or high latitudes, particularly during the post-noon period. This suggests that the ionosphere has a finite capacity to accommodate electron density, with the EIA region showing a pronounced tendency towards saturation due to its inherently high electron density. The study provides a comprehensive analysis of TEC saturation across different local times and seasons.