344 research outputs found
Energetics of Magnetic Storms Driven by Corotating Interaction Regions: A Study of Geoeffectiveness
We investigate the energetics of magnetic storms associated with corotating interaction regions (CIRs). We analyze 24 storms driven by CIRs and compare to 18 driven by ejecta-related events to determine how they differ in overall properties and in particular in their distribution of energy. To compare these different types of events, we look at events with comparable input parameters such as the epsilon parameter and note the properties of the resulting storms. We estimate the energy output by looking at the ring current energy along with ionospheric Joule heating derived from the PC and Dst indices. We also include the energy of auroral precipitation, estimated from NOAA/TIROS and DMSP observations. In general, ejecta-driven storms produce more intense events, as parameterized by Dst*, but they are usually not as long lasting, and in most cases deposit less energy. This is observed even for events that have similar input quantities, such as epsilon. This may be related to the high speed of the solar wind, in that an increased magnetosonic Mach number may influence the reconnection rate and therefore the coupling. Additionally, we find the efficiency of the coupling varies greatly from CIR-driven to ejecta-driven storms, with the CIRdriven storms coupling substantially more efficiently, particularly in the recovery phase. The efficiency of coupling (output energy divided by input energy) for CIRdriven storms in recovery phase was double that of ejecta-driven storms
A large‐scale view of Space Technology 5 magnetometer response to solar wind drivers
In this data report we discuss reprocessing of the Space Technology 5 (ST5) magnetometer database for inclusion in NASA's Coordinated Data Analysis Web (CDAWeb) virtual observatory. The mission consisted of three spacecraft flying in elliptical orbits, from 27 March to 27 June 2006. Reprocessing includes (1) transforming the data into the Modified Apex Coordinate System for projection to a common reference altitude of 110 km, (2) correcting gain jumps, and (3) validating the results. We display the averaged magnetic perturbations as a keogram, which allows direct comparison of the full‐mission data with the solar wind values and geomagnetic indices. With the data referenced to a common altitude, we find the following: (1) Magnetic perturbations that track the passage of corotating interaction regions and high‐speed solar wind; (2) unexpectedly strong dayside perturbations during a solstice magnetospheric sawtooth oscillation interval characterized by a radial interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) component that may have enhanced the accompanying modest southward IMF; and (3) intervals of reduced magnetic perturbations or “calms,” associated with periods of slow solar wind, interspersed among variable‐length episodic enhancements. These calms are most evident when the IMF is northward or projects with a northward component onto the geomagnetic dipole. The reprocessed ST5 data are in very good agreement with magnetic perturbations from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) spacecraft, which we also map to 110 km. We briefly discuss the methods used to remap the ST5 data and the means of validating the results against DMSP. Our methods form the basis for future intermission comparisons of space‐based magnetometer data.Key PointsST5 Magnetic Perturbations Have Been ReprocessedReprocessed data at 100 km compare well to DMSP dataKeogram view of data show response to several solar wind driversPeer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/111800/1/ess222.pd
Dielectric Behavior of Nonspherical Cell Suspensions
Recent experiments revealed that the dielectric dispersion spectrum of
fission yeast cells in a suspension was mainly composed of two sub-dispersions.
The low-frequency sub-dispersion depended on the cell length, whereas the
high-frequency one was independent of it. The cell shape effect was
qualitatively simulated by an ellipsoidal cell model. However, the comparison
between theory and experiment was far from being satisfactory. In an attempt to
close up the gap between theory and experiment, we considered the more
realistic cells of spherocylinders, i.e., circular cylinders with two
hemispherical caps at both ends. We have formulated a Green function formalism
for calculating the spectral representation of cells of finite length. The
Green function can be reduced because of the azimuthal symmetry of the cell.
This simplification enables us to calculate the dispersion spectrum and hence
access the effect of cell structure on the dielectric behavior of cell
suspensions.Comment: Preliminary results have been reported in the 2001 March Meeting of
the American Physical Society. Accepted for publications in J. Phys.:
Condens. Matte
On the feasibility of cooling and trapping metastable alkaline-earth atoms
Metastability and long-range interactions of Mg, Ca, and Sr in the
lowest-energy metastable state are investigated. The calculated
lifetimes are 38 minutes for Mg*, 118 minutes for Ca*, and 17 minutes for Sr*,
supporting feasibility of cooling and trapping experiments. The
quadrupole-quadrupole long-range interactions of two metastable atoms are
evaluated for various molecular symmetries. Hund's case (c) 4_g potential
possesses a large 100-1000 K potential barrier. Therefore magnetic trap losses
can possibly be reduced using cold metastable atoms in a stretched M=2 state.
Calculations were performed in the framework of ab initio relativistic
configuration interaction method coupled with the random-phase approximation.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures; to appear in PR
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Space physics for graduate students: an activities-based approach
The geospace environment is controlled largely by events on the Sun, such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections, which generate significant geomagnetic and upper atmospheric disturbances. The study of this Sun-Earth system, which has become known as space weather, has both intrinsic scientific interest and practical applications. Adverse conditions in space can damage satellites and disrupt communications, navigation, and electric power grids, as well as endanger astronauts. The Center for Integrated Space Weather Modeling (CISM), a Science and Technology Center (STC) funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (see http://www.bu.edu/cism/), is developing a suite of integrated physics-based computer models that describe the space environment from the Sun to the Earth for use in both research and operations [Hughes and Hudson, 2004, p. 1241]. To further this mission, advanced education and training programs sponsored by CISM encourage students to view space weather as a system that encompasses the Sun, the solar wind, the magnetosphere, and the ionosphere/thermosphere. This holds especially true for participants in the CISM space weather summer school [Simpson, 2004]
Wavelength-scale stationary-wave integrated Fourier-transform spectrometry
Spectrometry is a general physical-analysis approach for investigating
light-matter interactions. However, the complex designs of existing
spectrometers render them resistant to simplification and miniaturization, both
of which are vital for applications in micro- and nanotechnology and which are
now undergoing intensive research. Stationary-wave integrated Fourier-transform
spectrometry (SWIFTS)-an approach based on direct intensity detection of a
standing wave resulting from either reflection (as in the principle of colour
photography by Gabriel Lippmann) or counterpropagative interference
phenomenon-is expected to be able to overcome this drawback. Here, we present a
SWIFTS-based spectrometer relying on an original optical near-field detection
method in which optical nanoprobes are used to sample directly the evanescent
standing wave in the waveguide. Combined with integrated optics, we report a
way of reducing the volume of the spectrometer to a few hundreds of cubic
wavelengths. This is the first attempt, using SWIFTS, to produce a very small
integrated one-dimensional spectrometer suitable for applications where
microspectrometers are essential
Classical and quantum chaos in a circular billiard with a straight cut
We study classical and quantum dynamics of a particle in a circular billiard
with a straight cut. This system can be integrable, nonintegrable with soft
chaos, or nonintegrable with hard chaos, as we vary the size of the cut. We use
a quantum web to show differences in the quantum manifestations of classical
chaos for these three different regimes.Comment: LaTeX2e, 8 pages including 3 Postscript figures and 4 GIF figures,
submitted to Phys. Rev.
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