How does the planetary Kp-index affect autonomous drone GPS/GNSS accuracy?

At Kp 3.67 (G0 (Quiet / Unsettled Ionosphere)), auroral and mid-latitude ionospheric Total Electron Content (TEC) gradients induce carrier-phase cycle slips on single-frequency L1 receivers. Dual-band L1/L5 RTK with visual-inertial odometry (VIO) fallback prevents positional flyaways.

Why do geomagnetic storms cause UAV EKF compass variance errors?

Nominal (< 1.2° heading variance; dual-band L1/L5 RTK lock stable) Ionospheric electrojet currents perturb local crustal magnetic field vectors, triggering Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) yaw innovation faults unless optical flow or dual-antenna GNSS heading is active.

NASA DONKI GST TELEMETRY · RISK: LOWhttp://127.0.0.1:11434/v1 • meteors-gemma:latest

Planetary Kp 3.67 — G0 (Quiet / Unsettled Ionosphere)

Q: Why do geomagnetic storms cause UAV EKF compass variance errors?

Nominal (< 1.2° heading variance; dual-band L1/L5 RTK lock stable) Ionospheric electrojet currents perturb local crustal magnetic field vectors, triggering Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) yaw innovation faults unless optical flow or dual-antenna GNSS heading is active.

Local server-box Gemma (meteors-gemma:latest) fusion of NASA DONKI geomagnetic storm telemetry and NASA EONET active Earth hazard perimeters indicates elevated ionospheric scintillation risks for low-altitude Part 107 / BVLOS UAS operations. Pilots should verify dual-band L1/L5 RTK GNSS dilution of precision, calibrate onboard magnetometers prior to launch, and maintain strict separation from active EONET wildfire and volcanic ash TFR corridors.

Planetary Kp

Kp 3.67

2026-10-18T15:54:21.398Z

GNSS L1/L5 Risk

LOW

RTK Base Required

Compass Drift

±2.4°

Fluxgate Variance

EONET Corridors

15 Active

TFR Overwatch