Dynamo process governing solar wind-magnetosphere energy coupling |
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| Authors: | JR Kan S-I Akasofu |
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| Institution: | Geophysical Institute, University of Alaska, Fairbanks, AK 99701, U.S.A. |
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| Abstract: | Based on the method of dimensional analysis, the energy transfer rate from the solar wind into the magnetosphere can be characterized by a magnetic coupling parameter α on open field lines and by a viscous coupling parameter β on closed field lines. By assuming that the energy transfer rate can be monitored by the total energy dissipation rate of the magnetosphere, the histogram of α is constructed and is found to peak around ?0.1 < α < 0.1. This result implies that the energy transfer is governed primarily by the MHD dynamo process on open field lines and indicates that the ? function obtained by Perreault and Akasofu is verified as the first approximation of the solar wind-magnetosphere energy coupling function. |
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