Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2001
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2001agufmsm51d..03r&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2001, abstract #SM51D-03
Physics
2479 Solar Radiation And Cosmic Ray Effects, 2708 Current Systems (2409), 2736 Magnetosphere/Ionosphere Interactions, 2760 Plasma Convection, 2784 Solar Wind/Magnetosphere Interactions
Scientific paper
The efficiency of coupling between the solar wind and the magnetosphere has long been a topic of interest in magnetospheric physics. Numerous studies have detailed the response of magnetospheric parameters such as the cross-polar cap potential, indices of ground magnetic activity such as Ae, and field-aligned currents to changes in various solar wind parameters. Although the intensity of the aurora, field-aligned currents and plasma density have all been shown to depend on solar illumination, the effect of illumination on coupling has not generally been explicitly examined. We present results of a study of the dependence of dayside field-aligned current and of the cross-polar cap potential on solar wind parameters for cases which are in sunlight and in darkness. Very significant, strong correlation between sunlit afternoon (13-16 MLT) field-aligned currents flowing in the proper Region I direction and solar wind parameters such as Btsin(θ /2)v2 and Btsin(θ /2)PD1/2 was observed. The correlation observed in the morning was consistently less significant and the correlation coefficient was much smaller. There were no signficant correlations for the currents when the ionosphere was in darkness. Both the strong dependence of the correlation on solar illumination (ionospheric conductivity) and the weakness of observed correlation, compared to those obtained in previous studies of the cross polar cap potential, may be interpreted to imply that the reconnection process is a voltage, rather than a current, source. However, conductivity dependent feedback mechanisms may be important.
Bonnell J. W.
Carlson Carl W.
Cattell Cynthia A.
Dombeck J.
Elphic Richard C.
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