High-Latitude Ionospheric Dynamics During Conditions of Northward IMF

Abstract

In order to better understand the physical processes operating during conditions of northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), in situ measurements from the Dynamics Explorer-2 (low altitude) polar satellite and simultaneous observations from the auroral imager on the Dynamics Explorer-1 (high altitude) satellite were used to investigate the relationships between optical emissions, particle precipitation, and convective flows in the high-latitude ionosphere. Field aligned current and convective flow patterns during IMF north include polar cap arcs, the theta aurora or transpolar arc, and the 'horse-collar' aurora. The initial part of the study concentrated on the electrodynamics of auroral features in the horse-collar aurora, a contracted but thickened emission region in which the dawn and dusk portions can spread to very high latitudes, while the latter part focused on the evolution of one type of IMF north auroral pattern to another, specifically the quiet-time horse-collar pattern to a theta aurora