Improving and testing the empirical equatorial electrojet model with CHAMP satellite data

The longitudinal variation of the Equatorial Electrojet (EEJ) intensity has been revised including data from the equatorial station of Baclieu (Vietnam), where an unexpected enhancement of the EEJ magnetic effects is observed. The features of this longitudinal variation were also obtained with the CHAMP satellite, except in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, where no ground level data points were available. The EEJ magnetic signatures recorded on board the CHAMP satellite have been isolated for 325 passes in different longitude sectors around local noon. The results have been compared with the EEJ magnetic effects computed using the Empirical Equatorial Electrojet Model (3EM) proposed by Doumouya et al. (2003). The modeled EEJ magnetic effects are generally in good agreement with CHAMP observed EEJ magnetic signatures.