Title: The solar wind-magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling during a magnetic storm.
Abstract: The indices of IMF, ground magnetic field and observations of ionospheric E-field are used to study the response of E-field in high and middle latitude ionosphere to variation of the solar wind and the magnetosphere. It is shown that although the electrostatic potential distribu-tion at the magnetopause driven by the solar wind can be directly mapped to the ionosphere along the magnetic field line to the polar cap boundary, the response of the ionospheric E-field at high and middle latitudes is a kind of relaxation process related to the existence and development of the ring current.During the sudden southward turning of Bz, usually the ring current does not exist, or is very weak. There is a direct response in ionospheric ETfield. Within the period of southward Bz, however, when |Bz| increases, the response of the ionospheric E-field is a retarded one, because a large amount of the driving energy of the solar wind would be expended on supporting the inner magnetospheric process to enhance the ring current.When a southward Bz suddenly turns northward, the decay of the ring current, just like it's formation and increasing, needs certain relaxation time. Since the driving potential does, not exist now, the so-called region 2 field-aligned current caused by the discharge of the polarization of the ring current, becomes the unique source of the potential in the ionosphere.Some insight into the observed processes may be obtained from the circuit analogy and the simple model.
Publication Year: 1987
Publication Date: 1987-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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