Magnetohydrodynamic Modeling of the Origin and Evolution of Corotating Interaction Regions

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy

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Scientific paper

Recurrent geomagnetic activity at Earth is closely associated with corotating interaction regions (CIRs), which form when fast solar streams catch up to and interact with slow solar wind. CIRs are most often associated with the declining phase of the solar cycle. In the classic picture of the formation of CIRs, fast solar wind streams emanating from the polar coronal holes encounter and compress the slow solar wind in the ecliptic because of the overall tilt of the Sun's magnetic axis during this phase of the cycle. This picture fits well with Ulysses observations near the end of solar cycle 22. In the most recent solar minimum, recurrent fast solar wind streams at Earth were frequently observed, but these streams were associated with isolated equatorial coronal holes, rather than the extended polar coronal holes of the previous minimum. This time period would seem ideal for testing models of coronal and heliospheric structure, which were first developed and tested against observations at the end of cycle 22. We have developed MHD models of the corona and solar wind for Carrington rotation 2060 (Aug. 14 - Sept. 10, 2007), when prominent fast solar wind streams were present. We discovered that the model predictions varied significantly depending on which solar observatory was used to develop the boundary conditions, and that the models systematically underestimated the strength of B in the solar wind. We discuss our results thus far in identifying the underlying causes of these discrepancies and some of the implications for providing routine models of the corona and solar wind.
Research supported by NASA and NSF.

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