Radiation belt electron flux variability during three CIR-driven geomagnetic storms

Lam, M. M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0274-6119; Horne, R. B. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0412-6407; Meredith, N. P. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5032-3463; Glauert, S. A. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0149-8608. 2009 Radiation belt electron flux variability during three CIR-driven geomagnetic storms. Journal of Atmospheric and Solar-Terrestrial Physics, 71 (10-11). 1145-1156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jastp.2008.06.007

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Abstract/Summary

Coronal holes produce high speed solar wind streams (HSS) that subsequently interact with the slower downstream solar wind forming co-rotating interaction regions (CIRs). The CIR/HSS combination drives geomagnetic storms that have a weak to moderate signature in Dst. We simulate the behavior of relativistic (976 keV) electrons in the outer radiation belt and the slot region (2less-than-or-equals, slantLless-than-or-equals, slant7) during three CIR-driven storms associated with three consecutive rotations of a coronal hole that occurred just after solar maximum during June–August 1991. We use a 1d radial diffusion model (RADICAL) with losses due to pitch-angle scattering by plasmaspheric hiss. The losses are expressed through the electron lifetime calculated using the PADIE code driven by a global Kp-dependent model of plasmaspheric hiss intensity and fpe/fce. The outer boundary condition is time and energy-dependent and derived from observations. The model reproduces the observed flux at L=5 to within about a factor of 3 suggesting that flux levels are well-described by radial diffusion to and from the outer boundary. At L=3.5 and 4, the model overestimates the flux decay rates. This results in the observed flux exceeding the model flux, by up to a factor of 5 at L=4 and by up to a factor of 8 at L=3.5, by the end of the recovery phase. Comparison with model results from a geomagnetically quieter interval suggest that the underestimation in flux may be due to the lack of representation of local wave acceleration in the model.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jastp.2008.06.007
Programmes:	BAS Programmes > Global Science in the Antarctic Context (2005-2009) > Sun Earth Connections
ISSN:	1364-6826
Additional Keywords:	High speedsolarwind Magnetic storms Radiation belts Wave-particleinteractions
NORA Subject Terms:	Atmospheric Sciences
Date made live:	10 Feb 2010 15:35 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/8375

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