Electron and ion density variations before strong earthquakes (<i>M</i>>6.0) using DEMETER and GPS data

International audienceUsing IAP (plasma analyzer) and ISL (Langmuir probe) experiments onboard DEMETER (Detection of Electromagnetic Emissions Transmitted from Earthquake Regions) satellite and GPS (Global Positioning System) measurements , we have statistically analyzed the variations of the electron and ion densities to search for disturbances in the vicinity of four large earthquakes prior to events. The indices D st and K p were used to distinguish pre-earthquake anomalies from the other anomalies related to the geomag-netic activities. For each studied case, a very good agreement was found between the different parameters estimated by DEMETER and GPS data in the detection of pre-seismic anomalies. Our statistics results show that the anomalous deviations prior to earthquakes have different sign from case to case, and that their amplitude depends on the magnitude of the earthquake. It has also been found that the electron density measured by the ISL experiment at night detects anomalous variations significantly before the earthquakes. The appearance of positive and negative anomalies in both of DEMETER and TEC (Total Electron Content) data during 1 to 5 days before all studied earthquakes during quiet geomag-netic conditions indicates that these anomalous behaviors are highly regarded as seismo-ionospheric precursors