This is a well-written manuscript that can be recommended for publication after some re-writing has been done to address certain questions and concerns.

Referee report:  First results from the equatorial geomagnetic station at Entoto Observatory and Research Center, A. Nel1, N. Giday, M. Da Silva, D. Chekole, J. Matzka, Z. Isaacs, O. Bronkala, and L. Mogasa

Summary:

The authors have described a newly established geomagnetic variation station located close to the city of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, designed to address the lack of ground-monitoring for space weather research in the region of North and East Africa. The authors have provided some analysis of initial data sets to show the sensitivity of the station to the local influence of the Equatorial Electroject and the station's representation of global geomagnetic disturbance. The paper is well presented, defining the aims of the new station, its detail and its application to the wider understanding of the impacts of space weather.

Referee Comment:

Line 48: Note INTERMAGNET does not operate observatories but rather enables exchange of data. The stations mentioned are (or were) operated by IPGP (AAE, MBO, SOK) and IPGP & CRAAG (TAM)

Figure 1. Error in caption. Longitude should read 38°48′24.1”E

Figure 1 suggests high magnetic gradients (up to 20nT/m) compared to the accepted recommendation of 1nT/m for a typical geomagnetic observatory (Jankowski & Sucksdorff, 1996). However, that recommendation is typically applied to absolute magnetic observatories, so may not be significant if this observatory is primarily designed for space weather monitoring. Can this be commented on, particularly given the statement in Line 90 on static disturbances?

Line 75 The definition of L9 is made further on in the paper but can it be included here as 'lower K = 9 limit'?

Line 58,84 Can these statements on the importance of an East African, equatorial station be strengthened by citation to literature on the requirement for regional space weather monitoring?

Line 113 Does the specification here of '1-second resolution' refer to direction or time? Could this be clarified?

Line 124 The term 'geomagnetic coordinate system' would be more accurately described as 'geodetic coordinate system' or 'geographic coordinate system' given the definition of the XYZ co-ordinate system

Line 131 Is the fact that the data are sampled at one-minute intervals contradictory to the 1-second resolution referred to in Line 124? Are the data down sampled or filtered to one-minute? If so, can this process be defined i.e. is a specific filter used?

Line 172 What are the sources of non-geomagnetic noise in this frequency band (> 2-minute period) and can these be filtered without attenuating the signal of interest in the same band?

Figures 9 & 10 The fitting of the mean daily maximum EEJ amplitude in the figures is close to the median daily maximum. If the daily maximum is normally distributed for both quiet and storm conditions, then the mean and the median will, of course, be equal but can it be confirmed that the plots show the mean and not the median?

Given the noted operational difficulties in maintaining long-term magnetic stations in the region, can the authors comment further on measures taken to ensure the ENTOTO station will continue to operate in the long-term? For example, are there formal long-term agreements in place between the institutes collaborating on this project?

Jankowski, J. and Sucksdorff, C. 1996. Manual on Magnetic Measurements and Observatory Practice, International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy, Boulder, Co., 235 p. ISBN: 0-9650686-2-5, Chapter 3.1 Requirements for the observatory site