Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion: Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations

Ravindra T. Desai; Mervyn P. Freeman; Jonathan P. Eastwood; Joseph W. B. Eggington; M. O. Archer; Y. Y. Shprits; N. P. Meredith; F. A. Staples; I. J. Rae; H. Hietala; L. Mejnertsen; J. P. Chittenden; R. B. Horne

doi:10.1029/2021gl092554

Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion: Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations

Ravindra T. Desai^*, Mervyn P. Freeman, Jonathan P. Eastwood, Joseph W. B. Eggington, M. O. Archer, Y. Y. Shprits, N. P. Meredith, F. A. Staples, I. J. Rae, H. Hietala, L. Mejnertsen, J. P. Chittenden, R. B. Horne

^*Corresponding author for this work

Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

13 Citations (Scopus)

16 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The magnetopause marks the outer edge of the Earth's magnetosphere and a distinct boundary between solar wind and magnetospheric plasma populations. In this study, we use global magnetohydrodynamic simulations to examine the response of the terrestrial magnetopause to fast‐forward interplanetary shocks of various strengths and compare to theoretical predictions. The theory and simulations indicate the magnetopause response can be characterized by three distinct phases; an initial acceleration as inertial forces are overcome, a rapid compressive phase comprising the majority of the distance traveled, and large‐scale damped oscillations with amplitudes of the order of an Earth radius. The two approaches agree in predicting subsolar magnetopause oscillations with frequencies 2–13 mHz but the simulations notably predict larger amplitudes and weaker damping rates. This phenomenon is of high relevance to space weather forecasting and provides a possible explanation for magnetopause oscillations observed following the large interplanetary shocks of August 1972 and March 1991.

Original language	English
Article number	e2021GL092554
Pages (from-to)	1-11
Number of pages	11
Journal	Geophysical Research Letters
Volume	48
Issue number	16
Early online date	9 Aug 2021
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1029/2021gl092554
Publication status	Published - 28 Aug 2021

Keywords

Probing the Magnetosphere through Magnetoseismology and Ultra‐Low‐Frequency Waves
Interplanetary shocks
Coronal mass ejections
Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics
Solar wind/magnetosphere interactions
Magnetic storms and substorms
Space weather
Magnetic storms

Access to Document

10.1029/2021gl092554Licence: CC BY

2021GL092554.pdfFinal published version, 1.23 MBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

Desai, R. T., Freeman, M. P., Eastwood, J. P., Eggington, J. W. B., Archer, M. O., Shprits, Y. Y., Meredith, N. P., Staples, F. A., Rae, I. J., Hietala, H., Mejnertsen, L., Chittenden, J. P., & Horne, R. B. (2021). Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion: Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations. Geophysical Research Letters, 48(16), 1-11. Article e2021GL092554. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021gl092554

@article{c01cb637122b4126b55b55576af938d2,

title = "Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion: Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations",

abstract = "The magnetopause marks the outer edge of the Earth's magnetosphere and a distinct boundary between solar wind and magnetospheric plasma populations. In this study, we use global magnetohydrodynamic simulations to examine the response of the terrestrial magnetopause to fast‐forward interplanetary shocks of various strengths and compare to theoretical predictions. The theory and simulations indicate the magnetopause response can be characterized by three distinct phases; an initial acceleration as inertial forces are overcome, a rapid compressive phase comprising the majority of the distance traveled, and large‐scale damped oscillations with amplitudes of the order of an Earth radius. The two approaches agree in predicting subsolar magnetopause oscillations with frequencies 2–13 mHz but the simulations notably predict larger amplitudes and weaker damping rates. This phenomenon is of high relevance to space weather forecasting and provides a possible explanation for magnetopause oscillations observed following the large interplanetary shocks of August 1972 and March 1991.",

keywords = "Probing the Magnetosphere through Magnetoseismology and Ultra‐Low‐Frequency Waves, Interplanetary shocks, Coronal mass ejections, Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics, Solar wind/magnetosphere interactions, Magnetic storms and substorms, Space weather, Magnetic storms",

author = "Desai, {Ravindra T.} and Freeman, {Mervyn P.} and Eastwood, {Jonathan P.} and Eggington, {Joseph W. B.} and Archer, {M. O.} and Shprits, {Y. Y.} and Meredith, {N. P.} and Staples, {F. A.} and Rae, {I. J.} and H. Hietala and L. Mejnertsen and Chittenden, {J. P.} and Horne, {R. B.}",

note = "Funding information: R. T. Desai, J. P. Eastwood, and J. P. Chittenden acknowledge funding from NERC grant NE/P017347/1 (Rad-Sat). M. P. Freeman was supported by NERC grant NE/P016693/1 (SWIGS). J W. B. Eggington is funded by a UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Studentship (ST/R504816/1). M. O. Archer holds a UKRI (STFC/EPSRC) Stephen Hawking Fellowship EP/T01735X/1. Research into magnetospheric modeling at Imperial College London is also supported by Grant NE/P017142/1 (SWIGS). N. Meredith and R. Horne would like to acknowledge the Natural Environment Research Council Highlight Topic grant NE/P10738X/1 (Rad-Sat) and the NERC grants NE/V00249X/1 298 (Sat-Risk) and NE/R016038/1. I. J. Rae and F. A. Staples acknowledge STFC grants ST/V006320/1 and NE/P017185/1. This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 870452 (PAGER). This work used the Imperial College High Performance Computing Service (doi: 10.14469/hpc/2232).",

year = "2021",

month = aug,

day = "28",

doi = "10.1029/2021gl092554",

language = "English",

volume = "48",

pages = "1--11",

journal = "Geophysical Research Letters",

issn = "0094-8276",

publisher = "American Geophysical Union",

number = "16",

}

Desai, RT, Freeman, MP, Eastwood, JP, Eggington, JWB, Archer, MO, Shprits, YY, Meredith, NP, Staples, FA, Rae, IJ, Hietala, H, Mejnertsen, L, Chittenden, JP & Horne, RB 2021, 'Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion: Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations', Geophysical Research Letters, vol. 48, no. 16, e2021GL092554, pp. 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021gl092554

TY - JOUR

T1 - Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion

T2 - Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations

AU - Desai, Ravindra T.

AU - Freeman, Mervyn P.

AU - Eastwood, Jonathan P.

AU - Eggington, Joseph W. B.

AU - Archer, M. O.

AU - Shprits, Y. Y.

AU - Meredith, N. P.

AU - Staples, F. A.

AU - Rae, I. J.

AU - Hietala, H.

AU - Mejnertsen, L.

AU - Chittenden, J. P.

AU - Horne, R. B.

N1 - Funding information: R. T. Desai, J. P. Eastwood, and J. P. Chittenden acknowledge funding from NERC grant NE/P017347/1 (Rad-Sat). M. P. Freeman was supported by NERC grant NE/P016693/1 (SWIGS). J W. B. Eggington is funded by a UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Studentship (ST/R504816/1). M. O. Archer holds a UKRI (STFC/EPSRC) Stephen Hawking Fellowship EP/T01735X/1. Research into magnetospheric modeling at Imperial College London is also supported by Grant NE/P017142/1 (SWIGS). N. Meredith and R. Horne would like to acknowledge the Natural Environment Research Council Highlight Topic grant NE/P10738X/1 (Rad-Sat) and the NERC grants NE/V00249X/1 298 (Sat-Risk) and NE/R016038/1. I. J. Rae and F. A. Staples acknowledge STFC grants ST/V006320/1 and NE/P017185/1. This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 870452 (PAGER). This work used the Imperial College High Performance Computing Service (doi: 10.14469/hpc/2232).

PY - 2021/8/28

Y1 - 2021/8/28

N2 - The magnetopause marks the outer edge of the Earth's magnetosphere and a distinct boundary between solar wind and magnetospheric plasma populations. In this study, we use global magnetohydrodynamic simulations to examine the response of the terrestrial magnetopause to fast‐forward interplanetary shocks of various strengths and compare to theoretical predictions. The theory and simulations indicate the magnetopause response can be characterized by three distinct phases; an initial acceleration as inertial forces are overcome, a rapid compressive phase comprising the majority of the distance traveled, and large‐scale damped oscillations with amplitudes of the order of an Earth radius. The two approaches agree in predicting subsolar magnetopause oscillations with frequencies 2–13 mHz but the simulations notably predict larger amplitudes and weaker damping rates. This phenomenon is of high relevance to space weather forecasting and provides a possible explanation for magnetopause oscillations observed following the large interplanetary shocks of August 1972 and March 1991.

AB - The magnetopause marks the outer edge of the Earth's magnetosphere and a distinct boundary between solar wind and magnetospheric plasma populations. In this study, we use global magnetohydrodynamic simulations to examine the response of the terrestrial magnetopause to fast‐forward interplanetary shocks of various strengths and compare to theoretical predictions. The theory and simulations indicate the magnetopause response can be characterized by three distinct phases; an initial acceleration as inertial forces are overcome, a rapid compressive phase comprising the majority of the distance traveled, and large‐scale damped oscillations with amplitudes of the order of an Earth radius. The two approaches agree in predicting subsolar magnetopause oscillations with frequencies 2–13 mHz but the simulations notably predict larger amplitudes and weaker damping rates. This phenomenon is of high relevance to space weather forecasting and provides a possible explanation for magnetopause oscillations observed following the large interplanetary shocks of August 1972 and March 1991.

KW - Probing the Magnetosphere through Magnetoseismology and Ultra‐Low‐Frequency Waves

KW - Interplanetary shocks

KW - Coronal mass ejections

KW - Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics

KW - Solar wind/magnetosphere interactions

KW - Magnetic storms and substorms

KW - Space weather

KW - Magnetic storms

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85113542408&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1029/2021gl092554

DO - 10.1029/2021gl092554

M3 - Article

SN - 0094-8276

VL - 48

SP - 1

EP - 11

JO - Geophysical Research Letters

JF - Geophysical Research Letters

IS - 16

M1 - e2021GL092554

ER -

Interplanetary Shock‐Induced Magnetopause Motion: Comparison Between Theory and Global Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations

Abstract

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this