2004年11月磁暴期间环电流的演化过程——TC-2卫星中性原子成像仪观测结果

本文通过对TC-2卫星上搭载的中性原子成像仪(NUADU)在2004年11月发生的一次大磁暴期间观测到的一系列中性原子(ENA)图像的分析,试图给出环电流在磁暴期间的演化模式.研究表明,南向的行星际磁场(IMF)分量在离子从磁尾向内磁层注入和随后的环电流增长过程中起着关键的作用.IMF转为北向后,离子注入随即很快停止.在离子注入增强期间,离子的漂移路径是开放的,以致大量环电流离子从黄昏侧注入后快速地损失在黄昏至正午的磁层顶.所以,环电流往往在离子漂移路径从开放变为封闭后才达到最大强度,而不是在这之前,尽管那时的离子注入强度更大.在该磁暴主相期间,离子注入发生在17∶00~22∶00 LT范围内,形成极其不对称的环电流分布形态.而在恢复相期间,由于受大的IMF B_y分量的影响,离子注入区的地方时分布范围东向扩张.对称环电流在磁尾对流减小、离子漂移路径变为封闭形态之后形成.在磁暴恢复相后期,从ENA图像看环电流基本衰减到平静时期的水平,而Dst指数仍然显示较强的磁扰动,这说明越尾电流对Dst指数有很重要的影响.     

Outstanding issues of ring current dynamics

The terrestrial ring current consists of energetic charged particles flowing toroidally around the Earth, and creating a ring of westward electric current, centered at the equatorial plane and extending from geocentric distances of about 3–8R_E. Changes in this current are responsible for global decreases in the Earth's surface magnetic field, which is the defining feature of geomagnetic storms. The ring current is a critical element in understanding the onset and development of space weather disturbances in geospace. This review paper discusses recent developments in ring current research, and outlines the presently hottest issues, most of which were addressed at the Ring Current Symposium of the First S-RAMP Conference held in Sapporo, Japan, in October 2000.     

Geomagnetic activity dependence of O in transit from the ionosphere

Energetic O⁺ ions have important dynamic effects on the ring current. Insights into the effects of O⁺ on ring current dynamics have come primarily from models, not observations. Here, we discuss observations of O⁺ populations escaping from the ionosphere and their access to the plasma sheet and ring current. We review data establishing that a significant flux of O⁺ escapes the ionosphere during geomagnetically quiet intervals. We then estimate the relative magnitude of the O⁺ population in transit between the ionosphere and ring current during quiet intervals before geomagnetic storms. Our analysis suggests that dynamic reconfigurations of the magnetosphere during geomagnetic storms significantly alter the O⁺ transport paths from the ionosphere to the ring current. During these reconfigurations some of the pre-existing, quiet time, in-transit O⁺ populations are captured on magnetic field lines leading to the ring current. The prompt appearance of this O⁺ population in the ring current could modify the evolution of the ring current in the storm growth phase. Our analysis suggests that the consequences of an activity-dependent O⁺ transport path to the ring current should be systematically investigated.     

Are our ideas about Dst correct?

The idea of two separate storm time ring currents, a symmetric and an asymmetric one has accepted since the 1960s. The existence of a symmetric equatorial ring current was concluded from Dst. However, the asymmetric development of the low-latitude geomagnetic disturbance field during storms lead to the assumption of the real existence of an asymmetric ring current. I think it is time to inquire whether this conception is correct. Thus, I have investigated the development of the low-latitude geomagnetic field during all the magnetic local times under disturbed and quiet conditions. The storm on February 6–9, 1986 and a statistical analysis of many storms has shown that the asymmetry does not vanish during the storm recovery phase. The ratio between the recovery phase asymmetry and the main phase asymmetry is low only for powerful storms. Storms of moderate intensity show the opposite. The global picture of the field evolution of the February storm shows clear differences at different local times. For instance the main phase and recovery phase start time does not coincide with Dst. Also the ring current decay is not the same at different local times. Therefore, Dst gives an incorrect picture of the field development. Moreover, asymmetry does not disappear during international quiet days as the investigation of the low-latitude geomagnetic field shows. Considering all these observations, I think we must revise our ideas about the ring current. In my opinion only one ring current exists and this is an asymmetric one. This asymmetry increases during storms and develops rather fast to more or less symmetric conditions. However, in no case is itjustified to conclude from Dst that a symmetric ring current exists.     

On the role of collective interactions in asymmetric ring current formation

The contribution of resonant wave-particle interactions to the formation and decay of the magnetospheric ring current is analysed in the framework of a self-consistent set of equations which take into account azimuthal plasmasphere asymmetry. It is shown that the cyclotron interaction of westward drifting energetic protons with Alfven waves in the evening-side plasmaspheric bulge region leads to the formation of a ring current asymmetry located near 18:00 MLT. The time-scale of this asymmetry is determined by the proton drift time through the plasmaspheric bulge and is about 1 - 3 h. A symmetrical ring current decays mainly due to charge exchange processes. The theory is compared with known experimental data on ions and waves in the ring current and on low-latitude magnetic disturbances. New low-latitude magnetometer data on the magnetic storm of 24 - 26 July 1986 are also discussed. The model presented explains the observed localization of an asymmetrical ring current loop in the evening sector and the difference in relaxation time-scales of the asymmetry and the D_st index. It also explains measured wave turbulence levels in the evening-side plasmasphere and wave observation statistics.     

时间域航空电磁扩散特征和成像深度研究

为了研究时间域航空电磁系统扩散特征,基于连续性边界条件将电磁场向下延拓得到地下介质中各点处的频率域响应,通过傅里叶变换将其变换到时间域.计算阶跃波形发射时垂直磁偶极子和水平磁偶极子在均匀半空间介质和两层介质中产生的电磁场,通过电流密度矢量图和随时间变化的电流密度等值线展示电磁场在地下介质中的扩散过程.电磁场在地下的扩散受电阻率结构的影响.在良导地区电磁场扩散慢、衰减快,而在高阻地区电磁场扩散快、衰减慢.垂直磁偶极子在地下产生的感应电流形成一个电流环随时间向下、向外扩散.水平磁偶极子在地下产生的感应电流形成两个互相叠加的电流环.时间域电磁场扩散代表着真正物理意义上的电磁扩散,因为它展示了地下电磁场空间分布随时间的变化和场强的衰减.基于对感应电流环的研究,我们探究了扩散深度和时间域航空电磁数据成像深度的关系.时间域电磁场扩散规律的研究不仅加深了对电磁扩散特征的理解,更有助于提高航空电磁数据解释水平.     

波粒相互作用导致环电流质子沉降的卫星共轭观测

波粒相互作用是环电流损失的重要机制之一,但波粒相互作用导致的环电流离子沉降而损失迄今为止缺乏直接的观测证据.基于磁层及电离层卫星的协同观测,本文报道了发生在2015年9月7日,由电磁离子回旋波(EMIC波)导致环电流质子沉降的共轭观测事件.在等离子体层的内边界,Van Allen Probe B卫星观测到,存在EMIC波的区域和不存在EMIC波的区域相比,离子通量的投掷角分布的各向异性变弱.我们将Van Allen Probe B卫星沿着磁力线投影到电离层高度,同时在该投影区域内DMSP 16卫星在亚极光区域观测到环电流质子沉降.而且,通过从理论上计算质子弹跳平均扩散系数,我们进一步证实观测的EMIC波确实能将环电流质子散射到损失锥中.本文的研究工作为EMIC波导致环电流质子沉降提供了直接的观测证据,揭示了环电流衰减的重要物理机制:EMIC波将环电流质子散射到损失锥中,从而沉降到低高度大气层中而损失.     

大磁暴中环电流离子成分的变化及其与磁暴演化的关系

利用CRRES/MICS的观测数据，研究了磁暴期间内磁层离子成分的变化.对1991年两个典型磁暴和12个大磁暴的分析表明，组成暴时环电流的离子可以分成两组，一组由O⁺、低能H⁺和He⁺组成，起源于电离层(IOP)；另一组为高能H⁺和He⁺⁺，主要来自太阳风(SOP).宁静时环电流主要成分为SOP，大磁暴主相极大时环电流的主要成分是IOP.大磁暴期间离子可被注入到很低的高度(L=3-4).IOP对环电流的贡献随磁暴强度增大而增加，在大磁暴主相极大时可达80%(数密度).IOP中O⁺的快速增减是导致Dst指数在磁暴主相期间快速下降和恢复相中快速增长的主要原因.小磁暴中(D_st＞-50nT)O⁺对环电流的贡献可以忽略不计.     

Modeling the partial ring current effect in a disturbed magnetosphere

The mathematical model of the magnetic field of the partial ring current has been proposed. This current is considered as a pair of spatial current circuits in the Northern and Southern hemispheres, either of which includes two ring zones, in the geomagnetic equator plane and ionosphere, and two zones of the field-aligned current, flowing along the geomagnetic dipole field lines and joining ring fragments of the circuit. The model parameters are: colatitude of the eastward electrojet, longitudinal shift relative to the Sun-Earth axis, circuit half-angle, and the total current flowing in the circuit. The Biot-Savart-Laplace law has been used to calculate the magnetic field of the current circuit. The magnetic field of the partial ring current has been calculated under the conditions typical of a strong magnetic storm. The technique for calculating the partial ring current intensity, using the Asym-H geomagnetic index, has been proposed.     

About the relationship between auroral electrojets and ring currents

The relationship between the storm-time ring current and the auroral electrojets is investigated using IMAGE magnetometer data, D_St and H-SYM, and solar wind data. Statistical results as well as the investigation of single events show that the auroral electrojets occur also during nonstorm conditions without storm-time ring current development and even during the storm recovery phase of increasing D_St. A close correlation between electrojet intensity and ring current intensity was not found. Though the eastward electrojet moves equatorward during the storm main phase there is no unequivocal relationship between the movement of the westward electrojet and the ring current development. All these results suggest that the auroral electrojets and the ring current develop more or less independently of each other.     

用中低纬度变化磁场监测磁层环电流强度

本文选择北京地磁台和广州地磁台水平分量时均值的资料,采用Hibberd方法,分析研究了环电流对地磁场夜间值变化的影响,提出一种近似估计环电流强度的简便方法,这种方法可用于及时监测环电流强度的变化,为短期磁暴预报提供有用的资料和途径。     

1998年5月磁暴磁层电流体系的地磁效应分析

低纬度地区地磁场的短时变化主要由以下电流体系产生:电离层发电机电流(IDC)、对称环电流(SRC)以及由部分环电流和Ⅱ区场向电流及其电离层回路组成的内磁层三维电流体系(PRFI).此外,由Ⅰ区场向电流及其电离层回路组成的电流体系(FACI)所产生的低纬地磁场也是不可忽略的.本文针对1998年5月1-6日的大磁暴,首先利用多个同子午线台站对的数据分离并消去由IDC电流产生的Sq场.然后,通过线性建模分离其他电流体系产生的磁场成分.结果表明:(1)发生在5月1-6日的磁暴可以分为两个过程,PRFI和FACI电流体系在1-3日不明显,在4-5日伴随着亚暴强烈发生.(2)SRC的变化情况在第一阶段同Dst指数相似,在第二阶段明显滞后于Dst指数.(3)在5月4-5日,PRFI在SRC之前增强,随着PRFI和FACI的恢复,SRC开始增强.这一结果为我们了解环电流和场向电流的形成以及它们的关系提供线索.     

Dynamics of magnetospheric current systems during magnetic storms of different intensity

The dynamics of the magnetospheric magnetic field during the magnetic storms of different intensity has been studied. The magnetic field variations on the Earth’s surface were calculated using the paraboloid model of the magnetosphere, taking into account the induction currents flowing in the diamagnetically conductive Earth. Dst and its components have been calculated for ten magnetic storms. It has been indicated that relative contributions of magnetospheric sources to Dst change depending on the storm power. For weak and moderate storms, the contribution of the magnetotail current sheet can reach values comparable with the ring current contribution and, sometimes, can even exceed this contribution. For strong storms, the ring current field dominates over the tail current field, the absolute value of which does not exceed 150 nT (also achieved during less intense storms). For storms with minimum Dst exceeding-200 nT, the tail current field is saturated, whereas the ring current can continue developing.     

基于中性原子通量数据的磁暴期间环电流研究

本文通过分析两次大磁暴期间的中性原子(ENA)通量数据,试图揭示环电流离子通量的变化规律,进一步探讨环电流的形成和损失机制,以及磁暴和亚暴的关系.两次磁暴期间ENA通量的变化呈现出一些重要的特征:(1)通量随能量的增高而快速降低,磁暴主相期间高能端通量所占比重增大;(2)通量比例曲线的起伏远比通量曲线的起伏要平缓;(3)通量的起伏与AE指数之间没有简单的对应关系;(4)磁暴恢复相开始前,ENA通量出现短时间的猛烈增长,特别是低能端通量的增长异常迅速;(5)Dst/SYM-H指数快速恢复期间,ENA通量的变化表现为两个完全不同的阶段:先降低,后增大.忽略影响ENA通量的其他次要因素,ENA通量的上述特征直接反映了环电流的发展规律.环电流离子通量随能量的增高快速下降,磁暴主相期间可能由于高能O⁺的增加使得能谱有所变硬.离子主要受南向行星际磁场(IMF)所引起的对流电场的驱动注入到环电流区域,通量的变化大体上是无色散的.亚暴活动与环电流的增长没有直接的因果关系,但亚暴活动会引起环电流离子通量的短时间尺度波动.恢复相开始前,环电流离子在昏侧区域发生堆积,使得局部离子通量变大.这可能是由于屏蔽电场的形成削弱了内磁层对流电场,造成离子在磁层顶的逃逸损失过程减弱.在Dst/SYM-H指数的快速恢复期间,环电流离子通量的衰减速度也可能发生阶段性变化.这说明Dst/SYM-H指数并不能准确反映环电流的强度,环电流的衰减过程可能具有比先快后慢更为复杂的阶段性模式.     

Contributions to the Ring Current Energy During Geomagnetic Storms

The purpose of this research was to study the complexity of the energization of the ring current during a geomagnetic storm, produced during southern Bz(IMF) by the injection of plasma sheet ions, accelerated by enhanced convective electric fields. This model assumes that the plasma sheet is continuously populated by H⁺ from the sun and the ionosphere, and sporadically by ionospheric O⁺, making the ring current a coupled system whose energy can hardly be expressed analytically. When Bz(IMF) turns north, the ring current becomes uncoupled, and the energy decays exponentially if the storm is weak, or can be expressed as a combination of exponentials during strong storms representing the quick decay of O⁺ and the slower decay of H⁺, as has been shown.     

Ring current asymmetry during a magnetic storm

The ring current dynamics during the magnetic storm has been studied in the work. The response of the magnetospheric current systems to the external influence of the solar wind, specifically, resulting in the development of the asymmetric ring current component, has been calculated using the magnetic field paraboloid model. The asymmetric ring current has been considered as a family of spatial current circuits in the Northern and Southern hemispheres, composed of the zones of the partial ring current in the geomagnetic equator plane, which close through the system of field-aligned currents into the ionosphere. The value of the total partial ring current has been estimated by comparing the calculated asymmetry of the magnetospheric magnetic field at the geomagnetic equator with the value of the Asym-H geomagnetic index. The variations in the symmetric and asymmetric components of the ring current magnetic field have been calculated for the magnetic storm of November 6–14, 2004. The contributions of the magnetospheric current systems to the Dst and AU geomagnetic indices have been calculated.     

磁暴期间太阳风-磁层-电离层间的耦合过程

本文用行星际和地面磁场以及电离层资料,讨论了三次磁暴期间高、中纬电离层电场对太阳风和磁层内变化的响应。 分析表明,当IMF的B_x分量由北向转为南向时,太阳风驱动的磁层对流变化能直接反映出高纬电离层电位的变化。但持续南向的B_x再次增强时,太阳风输入的主要能量耗损于内磁层过程;电离层的响应表现为一个弛豫过程。当B_x由南转北时,环电流的消失对电离层的作用同样有弛豫的特点。此时,驱动电位已撤消,环电流是维持电离层电位的唯一外源。 本文用电路类比及简单模式法结论对上述几种实测情况进行了讨论。     

The response of the high-latitude ionosphere to the solar-wind pressure jump with a southward IMF on January 10, 1997

The well-studied event of January 10, 1997, was used to study the mechanism responsible for the response of the auroral ionosphere to the solar-wind dynamic pressure jump given a southward interplanetary magnetic field. All solar-wind parameters of this event were constant except for the jump in plasma density (duration 22 min). Immediately after arrival and during the pressure jump, the inner boundary of the auroral oval moved poleward, whereas the position of the outer boundary was stable. The amplification of the magnetopause current caused by an increase in the solar-wind plasma density was calculated. We think that the amplified magnetopause current is closed by the polarization current at the front of the disturbed region in the magnetosphere, thus forming the “transient ring current” that exists during the pressure jump. We determined the northward magnetic field of this “temporary ring current,” the order of magnitude of which coincided with that of the field responsible for the observed poleward shift of the high-latitude boundary of the auroral oval.     

A comparison of solar wind and ionospheric plasma contributions to the September 24–25, 1998 magnetic storm

We have used a global time-dependent magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation of the magnetosphere and particle tracing calculations to determine the access of solar wind ions to the magnetosphere and the access of ionospheric O⁺ ions to the storm-time near-Earth plasma sheet and ring current during the September 24–25, 1998 magnetic storm. We found that both sources have access to the plasma sheet and ring current throughout the initial phase of the storm. Notably, the dawnside magnetosphere is magnetically open to the solar wind, allowing solar wind H⁺ ions direct access to the near-Earth plasma sheet and ring current. The supply of O⁺ ions from the dayside cusp to the plasma sheet varies because of changes in the solar wind dynamic pressure and in the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). Most significantly, ionospheric O⁺ from the dayside cusp loses access to the plasma sheet and ring current soon after the southward turning of the IMF, but recovers after the reconfiguration of the magnetosphere following the passage of the magnetic cloud. On average, during the first 3 h after the sudden storm commencement (SSC), the number density of solar wind H⁺ ions is a factor of 2–5 larger than the number density of ionospheric O⁺ ions in the plasma sheet and ring current. However, by 04:00 UT, ∼4 h after the SSC, O⁺ becomes the dominant species in the ring current and carries more energy density than H⁺ ions in both the plasma sheet and ring current.     

Afternoon mid-latitude current system and low-latitude geomagnetic field asymmetry during geomagnetic storms

For four geomagnetic storms of middle intensity the relationship between the low-latitude magnetic field asymmetry using ASY indices and the intensity of the auroral eastward and westward electro-jet was considered. It was asked whether there exists a connection between ASY and the eastward electrojet. To answer this question equivalent current systems were estimated in mid-latitudes. It was found that the observations obviously show no correlative relationship between the low-latitude magnetic-field asymmetry and the eastward electrojet, whereas one exists between ASY and the westward electrojet. To explain the generally accepted common three-dimensional current system between the partial ring current and the eastward electrojet, a condensor model of the three-dimensional current system was developed. It could be shown that the short periodic variations of the partial ring current are shielded by the condensor and cannot influence the eastward-electrojet current.