CPAESS Discovery Seminar: Ionospheric Irregularities and GPS Positioning Errors Over CONUS: What Recent Storms Reveal About Mid‑Latitude GPS Vulnerability

CPAESS Discovery Seminar with Waqar Younas, NASA Jack Eddy Postdoctoral Fellow

WHEN:  Wednesday, July 22, 2026 at 11:00am MT (Virtual)
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TITLE:  Ionospheric Irregularities and GPS Positioning Errors Over CONUS: What Recent Storms Reveal About Mid‑Latitude GPS Vulnerability

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SUMMARY:  Space‑weather disturbances are often considered to affect mainly low‑ and high‑latitude regions, but recent geomagnetic storms have shown that mid‑latitude GPS can also be highly vulnerable. The May 2024 event served as a wake‑up call, revealing pronounced ionospheric irregularities and significant degradation in positioning accuracy across the continental United States. Building on this example, the presentation will examine several additional recent storms, comparing how mid‑latitude irregularities evolved and how strongly they impacted navigation performance. 

The discussion will highlight the broader implications for GPS‑dependent systems and the growing need for improved monitoring and forecasting capabilities.

WaqarYounas is a NASA Jack Eddy Postdoctoral Fellow hosted at Boston University,where his research focuses on ionospheric irregularities, GNSS scintillation, and storm‑time impacts on satellite‑based navigation. His work combines multi‑instrument observations, physics‑based modeling, and large‑scale GNSS data sets to understand how space‑weather disturbances degrade positioning accuracy over the continental United States and polar regions.

For more information, visit the CPAESS Discovery Seminars page