• Bulletin of the Korean Space Science Society
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.25.2-25.2
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• 2008

Polar rain is a spatially uniform precipitation of electrons with energies around 100eV that penetrate into the polar cap region where geomagnetic field lines are connected to the Interplanetary Magnetic Fields (IMF). Since their occurrences depend on the IMF sector polarity, they are believed to originate from the field aligned component of the solar wind. However, statistically direct correlation between polar rain and solar wind has not been shown. In this presentation, we examined specifically the IMF strength influence on the polar rain flux variation by classifying of IMF sector polarities. For this study, we employed the polar rain flux data measured by STSAT-1 and compared them with the solar wind parameters obtained from the WIND and ACE satellites. We found the direct mutuality between polar rain flux and IMF strength with correlation coefficient above 0.5. This proportional tendency appears stronger when the northern hemisphere is in the away sector of the IMF, which could be associated with a favorable geometry for magnetic reconnection. Simple particle trajectory simulation clearly shows why polar rain intensity depends on the IMF sector polarity. These results are consistent with the direct entry model of Fairfield et al.(1985), while low correlation coefficient with solar wind density, the similarity between slops of both energy spectra shows that transport process occur without acceleration.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.11-28
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• 2004

To better understand how high-latitude electric fields influence thermospheric dynamics, winds in the high-latitude lower thermosphere are studied by using the Thermosphere-ionosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model developed by the National Conte. for Atmospheric Research (NCAR-TIEGCM). The model is run for the conditions of 1992-1993 southern summer. The association of the model results with the interplanetary magnetic field(IMF) is also examined to determine the influences of the IMF-dependent ionospheric convection on the winds. The wind patterns show good agreement with the WINDII observations, although the model wind speeds are generally weaker than the observations. It is confirmed that the influences of high-latitude ionospheric convection on summertime thermospheric winds are seen down to 105 km. The difference wind, the difference between the winds for IMF$\neq$O and IMF=0, during negative IMF $B_y$ shows a strong anticyclonic vortex while during positive IMF $B_y$ a strong cyclonic vortex down to 105 km. For positive IMF $B_z$ the difference winds are largely confined to the polar cap, while for negative IMF B, they extend down to subauroral latitudes. The IMF $B_z$ -dependent diurnal wind component is strongly correlated with the corresponding component of ionospheric convection velocity down to 108 km and is largely rotational. The influence of IMF by on the lower thermospheric summertime zonal-mean zonal wind is substantial at high latitudes, with maximum wind speeds being $60\;ms^-1$ at 130 km around $77^{\circ}$ magnetic latitude.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.7-13
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• 2014

Variabilities in the solar wind cause disturbances throughout the heliosphere on all temporal and spatial scales, which leads to changeable space weather. As a view of space weather forecasting, in particular, it is important to know direct and indirect causes modulating the space environment near the Earth in advance. Recently, there are discussions on a role of the interaction of the solar wind with Mercury in affecting the solar wind velocity in the Earth's neighborhood during its inferior conjunctions. In this study we investigate a question of whether other parameters describing the space environment near the Earth are modulated by the inner planets' wake, by examining whether the interplanetary magnetic field and the proton density in the solar wind observed by the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) spacecraft, and the geomagnetic field via the Dst index and Auroral Electrojet index (AE index) are dependent upon the relative position of the inner planets. We find there are indeed apparent variations. For example, the mean variations of the geomagnetic fields measured in the Earth's neighborhood apparently have varied with a timescale of about 10 to 25 days. Those variations in the parameters we have studied, however, turn out to be a part of random fluctuations and have nothing to do with the relative position of inner planets. Moreover, it is found that variations of the proton density in the solar wind, the Dst index, and the AE index are distributed with the Gaussian distribution. Finally, we point out that some of properties in the behavior of the random fluctuation are to be studied.