Wide-field Aurora Imager Onboard Fengyun Satellite: Data Products and Validation

New observations of auroras based on the wide-field aurora imager (WAI) onboard Fengyun-3D (FY-3D) satellite are exhibited in this paper. Validity of the WAI data is analyzed by comparing auroral boundaries derived from WAI observations with results obtained from data collected by the Special Sensor Ultraviolet Spectrographic Imager (SSUSI) aboard the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP F18). Dynamic variations of the aurora with the solar wind, interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) parameters, and the SYM-H index are also investigated. The comparison of auroral boundaries indicates that the WAI data are morphologically valid and suitable to the study of auroral dynamics. Effective responses to solar wind parameters indicate that the WAI data can be useful to monitor and predict the Earth’s space weather. Since the configuration of aurora is a good indicator of the solar wind–magnetosphere–ionosphere (SW-M-I) coupling system, and can reflect the disturbance of the space environment, the WAI will provide important data to help us to study the physical processes in space.