Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Nightside field-aligned current during the April 6, 2000 superstorm

  • Articles
  • Geophysics
  • Published:
Chinese Science Bulletin

Abstract

Using the east-west geomagnetic disturbance fields observed from stations at mid-latitudes, we investigate the characteristics of field-aligned currents on the nightside during the April 6, 2000 superstorm. The results indicate that there is an eastward disturbance on the nightside of Northern Hemisphere during the main phase of magnetic storm, while the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) is continued southward. The positive disturbances in the postmidnight are larger than that in the premidnight. This suggests that upward field-aligned currents develop on the nightside, when the IMF is directed southward. The peak of upward field-aligned currents is located in postmidnight, and it will be more obvious at substorm expansion. We get the conclusion that both partial ring current and region-2 field-aligned current shift to dusk sector. The upward region-2 current is decreased at substorm onset, and intensified after it. We also investigate the relationship between the upward field-aligned currents on the nightside and the auroral electrojets at high latitudes. It shows a good correspondence between region-2 current and the westward electrojet in the postmidnight. We suppose that they are both associated with the convection electric field.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Sibeck D G. A model for the transient magnetospheric response to sudden solar wind dynamic pressure variations. J Geophys Res, 1990, 95: 3755–3771

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Chen G X, Lin Y, Cable S. Generation of traveling convection vortices and field-aligned currents in the magnetosphere by response to an interplanetary tangential discontinuity. Geophys Res Lett, 2000, 27: 3583–3586

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Lanzerotti L J, Wolfe A, Maclennan C, et al. Ionosphere and ground-base response to field-aligned currents near the magnetospheric cusp region. J Geophys Res, 1987, 92: 7739–7743

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Xu W Y, Kamide Y. Decomposition of daily geomagnetic variations by using method of natural orthogonal component. J Geophys Res, 2004, 109: A05218

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Feldstein Y I, Popov V A, Cumnock J A, et al. Auroral electrojets and boundaries of plasma domains in the magnetosphere during magnetically disturbed intervals. Ann Geophys, 2006, 24: 2243–2276

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Xie L, Pu Z Y, Fu S Y. Energization and injection of intense storm ring current ions. In: Wang H N, Xu R L, eds. Solar-Terrestrial Magnetic Activity and Space Environment. COSPAR Colloquium, Ser 14. Pergamon, 2002. 271–274

  7. Kamide Y, Kokubun S. Two-component auroral electrojet: Importance for substorm studies. J Geophys Res, 1996, 101: 13027–13046

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Sun W, Ahn B H, Akasofu S I, et al. A comparison of the observed mid-latitude magnetic disturbance fields with those reproduced from the high-latitude modeling current system. J Geophys Res, 1984, 89: 10881–10889

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Clauer C R, McPherron R L. Mapping the local time-universal time development of magnetospheric substorms using mid-latitude magnetic observations. J Geophys Res, 1974, 79: 2811–2820

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Xu W Y. Physics of Electromagnetic Phenomena of the Earth (in Chinese). Hefei: University of Science and Technology of China Press, 2009. 401

    Google Scholar 

  11. Hairson M R, Drake K A, Skoug R. Saturation of the ionospheric polar cap potential during the October–November 2003 supersorms. J Geophys Res, 2005, 110: A09S26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Ebihara Y, Fok M C, Sazykin S, et al. Ring current and the magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling during the superstorm of 20 November 2006. J Geophys Res, 2005, 110: A09S22

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Gopalswamy N, Barbieri L, Cliver E W, et al. Introduction to violent Sun-Earth connection events of October–November 2003. J Geophys Res, 2005, 110: A09S00

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Wu Y Y, Xu W Y, Chen G X, et al. Ground magnetic characteristics of the storm-time ring current asymmetry. Sci China Ser D-Earth Sci, 2008, 51: 686–693

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Wang X Y, Liu Z X, Shen C. Simulation study of ring current properties during main phase of storm. Acta Phys Sin, 2007, 56: 7346–7354

    Google Scholar 

  16. Brandt P C son, Ohtani S, Mitchell D G, et al. Global ENA observations of the storm mainphase ring current: Implications for skewed electric fields in the inner magnetosphere. Geophy Res Lett, 2002, 29: 1954–1956

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Akasofu S I. Polar and magnetospheric substorms, D Reidel, Norwood, Mass, 1968, 44

    Google Scholar 

  18. Iyemori T, Rao D R K. Decay of the Dst field of geomagnetic disturbance after substorm onset and its implication to storm-substorm relation. Ann Geophys, 1996, 14, 608–618

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Ahn B H, Kroehl H W, Kamide Y, et al. Universal time variations of the auroral electrojet indices. J Geophys Res, 2000, 105: 267–275

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Xu W Y, Chen G X, Du A M, et al. Key points model for polar region currents. J Geophys Res, 2008, 113: A03S11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Xu W Y, Geomagnetic effects of the inner magnetospheric current system (in Chinese). Chin J Geophys, 1992, 35: 3–10

    Google Scholar 

  22. Yang S F, Du A M, Gao Y F, et al. Latitudinal effect of magnetic storm on April 6, 2000 at low-latitude meridian chain (in Chinese). Chin J Geophys, 2002, 45: 461–469

    Google Scholar 

  23. Xu W Y. Variations of the auroral electrojet belt during substorms (in Chinese). Chin J Geophys, 2009, 52: 607–615

    Google Scholar 

  24. Nakano S, Iyemori T. Storm-time field-aligned currents on the nightside inferred from ground-based magnetic data at midlatitudes: Relationships with the interplanetary magnetic field and substorms. J Geophys Res, 2005, 110: A07216, doi: 10.1029/2004JA010737

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Hong M H, Wang X M, Chua D, et al. Auroral substorm response to solar wind pressure shock (in Chinese). Chinese Sci Bull, 2001, 46: 1547–1551

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Hoffman R A, Fujii R, Sugiura M. Characteristics of the field-aligned current system in the nighttime sector during auroral substorms. J Geophys Res, 1994, 99: 21303–21325

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Iijima T. Field-aligned current in geospace: Substance and dignificance, In: Ohtani S I, Fujii R, Hesse M, et al., eds. Magnetospheric Current Systems, Geophys Mogogr Ser, 2000, 118: 107–129

  28. Liemohn M W, Kozyra J U, Thomsen M F, et al. Dominant role of the asymmetric ring current in producing the stormtime Dst*. J Geophys Res, 2001, 106: 10883–10904

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Ebihiara Y, Ejiri M, Nilsson H, et al. Statistical distribution of the storm-time proton ring current: POLAR measurements, 2002. Geophys Res Lett, 1969, 29: 1969–1972

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Le G, Russell C T, Takahashi K. Morphology of the ring current derived from magnetic field observations. Ann Geophys, 2004, 22: 1267–1295

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Iijima T, Potemra T A. The amplitude distribution of field-aligned currents at northern high latitudes observed by Triad. J Geophys Res, 1976, 81: 2165–2174

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Kataoka R, Nishitani N, Ebihara Y, et al. Dynameic variations of a convection flow reversal in the subauroral postmidnight sector as seen by the SuperDARN Hokkaido HF radar. Geophys Res Lett, 2007, 34: L21105.1–L21105.5

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China

    Yuan Wang, MingHua Hong, GengXiong Chen, WenYao Xu, AiMin Du, XuDong Zhao & Hao Luo

  2. Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Yuan Wang, XuDong Zhao & Hao Luo

  3. State Key Laboratory of Space Weather, Beijing, 100190, China

    AiMin Du

  4. Institute of Geophysics, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing, 100081, China

    XiaoCan Liu

Authors
  1. Yuan Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. MingHua Hong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. GengXiong Chen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. WenYao Xu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. AiMin Du
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. XuDong Zhao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. XiaoCan Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Hao Luo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to MingHua Hong.

About this article

Cite this article

Wang, Y., Hong, M., Chen, G. et al. Nightside field-aligned current during the April 6, 2000 superstorm. Chin. Sci. Bull. 55, 2175–2181 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-010-3260-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11434-010-3260-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation