Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2011
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011agufmsa14a..08a&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2011, abstract #SA14A-08
Physics
[2409] Ionosphere / Current Systems, [2415] Ionosphere / Equatorial Ionosphere, [2443] Ionosphere / Midlatitude Ionosphere, [2447] Ionosphere / Modeling And Forecasting
Scientific paper
Large scale currents in the ionosphere are driven by a variety of sources, including neutral winds, gravity, and plasma pressure gradients. While the stronger day-time wind-driven currents have been extensively studied, gravity and diamagnetic currents in the ionosphere have received very little attention, but can have substantial effects even during the night. With the availability of a new generation of magnetic field models based on high-accuracy satellite magnetic measurements, it becomes increasingly important to account for these smaller current systems. In this work, we use the stand-alone NCAR TIEGCM electrodynamics solver along with empirical density, wind and temperature inputs, to model the global current systems caused by gravity and diamagnetism in the F-region ionosphere and calculate their magnetic perturbations. These results allow us for the first time to visualize the global structure of these currents and quantify their magnetic perturbations. We find a significantly larger net gravity-driven current during the night than one would expect from the small early-morning plasma density. We also find some discrepancies between the diamagnetic perturbation and a theoretical prediction which could indicate interesting physical effects not accounted for by the theory. These results will allow geomagnetic field modelers to account for these important current systems and create more accurate models. This work will also be crucial in analyzing ionospheric magnetic field measurements from the upcoming Swarm satellite mission.
Alken Patrick
Maus Stefan
Maute A. I.
Richmond Arthur D.
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