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Magnetometers are a key component of heliophysics research providing valuable insight into the dynamics of electromagnetic field regimes and their coupling throughout the solar system. On satellites, magnetometers provide detailed observations of the extension of the solar magnetic field into interplanetary space and of planetary environments. At Earth, magnetometers are deployed on the ground in extensive arrays spanning the polar cap, auroral and sub-auroral zone, mid- and low-latitudes and equatorial electrojet with nearly global coverage in azimuth (longitude or magnetic local time—MLT). These multipoint observations are used to diagnose both ionospheric and magnetospheric processes as well as the coupling between the solar wind and these two regimes at a fraction of the cost of in-situ instruments. Despite their utility in research, ground-based magnetometer data can be difficult to use due to a variety of file formats, multiple points of access for the data, and limited software. In this short article we review the Open-Source Python library GMAG which provides rapid access to ground-based magnetometer data from a number of arrays in a Pandas DataFrame, a common data format used throughout scientific research.

Various ESA projects and several proposals to first Swarm DISC Call for Ideas (May 2016) suggested possible evolution for the current Swarm Level 2 FAC products, and the implementation of quality flags for the FAC products. The Field-Aligned Currents—Methodology Inter-Comparison Exercise (FAC-MICE) consisted in comparison of the various methods to determine the FAC from Swarm data, with a test dataset of 28 Swarm auroral crossings delivered to participants last June. Eight groups performed the FAC-MICE analysis. The results of this exercise, discussed in the dedicated ‘Swarm Ionospheric Currents Products workshop’ in ESTEC on September 2017, highlighted the strengths of the various methods/approaches. Following discussion with the participants to this workshop, we are now working to develop an open source platform for user-definable FAC calculation.

Low Earth orbit satellites frequently encounter Pc1 pulsations, but most have been observed with limited latitudinal extent or short lifetime. In this study we analyze two large‐scale Pc1 pulsations (both latitudinally wide and long‐lasting) generated by ionospheric ducting effect using Swarm and ground magnetometers on 25 June and 3 September 2015. Swarm observed the 25 June pulsations on both dayside and nightside during the storm time substorm (a strong geomagnetic storm on 23 June with \(D_{st} = − 204~nT\)). We found the Pc1 pulsations were pervasive in both magnetic local time sectors of dayside and nightside for at least 2 hr. Another large Pc1 pulsation on 3 September was observed during a nonstorm substorm period. We conclude that (1) ionospheric ducting can transmit Pc1 waves to a wide range of L shells, (2) geomagnetic storm is not a prerequisite for such large‐scale ducting, and (3) wave intensity can abruptly decrease across sharp gradients in the ionospheric plasma density.