Engineering topics

Berdichevsky, D. B.

Publications and source records attributed to Berdichevsky, D. B..

4 records

DOE OSTI2020

Voyager 1 and 2 Observations of a Change in the Nature of Magnetic Fluctuations in the VLISM with Increasing Distance from the Heliopause

Voyager 2 (V2) crossed the heliopause at 119.0 au on 2018 day 309, after which it observed compressive (longitudinal) magnetic field fluctuations along the average magnetic field direction in the very local interstellar medium (VLISM) at distances from 119.00 to 121.48 au and latitudes 32.°2 to 32.°4 S in heliographic inertial coordinates from 2018 day 309 to 2019 day 230. This result confirms the observations of longitudinal magnetic field fluctuations by Voyager 1 (V1) between 124.14 and 128.71 au at 34.°6N (∼2–7 au upwind of the heliopause) from 2013 day 133 to 2014 day 235. V1 crossed the heliopause at 121.58 au and 34.°5N on 2012 day 238. It came as a surprise to find it seemed that V1 observed transverse (Alfvénic) fluctuations of B between 131.40 and 135.98 au at latitude 34.°6–34.°7N (∼10–14 au upwind of the heliopause) from 2015 day 145 to 2016 day 248. The most recent V1 observations show the possible presence of transverse fluctuations of B in the VLISM from 141.44 to 146.01 au at 34.°7–34.°8N (∼20–24 au from the heliopause) between 2018 day 75 and 2019 day 178. Together, these observations show that longitudinal (compressive) magnetic field fluctuations are transmitted through the heliopause from the heliosheath into the VLISM, and are then converted into transverse (Alfvénic) fluctuations at ∼130 au (∼8 au from the heliopause) that are observed out at 146 au (∼24 au from the heliopause).

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

NASA NTRS2015

Wind Magnetic Clouds for 2010-2012: Model Parameter Fittings, Associated Shock Waves, and Comparisons to Earlier Periods

We fitted the parameters of magnetic clouds (MCs) as identified in the Wind spacecraft data from early 2010 to the end of 2012 using the model of Lepping, Jones, and Burlaga (J. Geophys. Res. 95, 1195, 1990). The interval contains 48 MCs and 39 magnetic cloud-like (MCL) events. This work is a continuation of MC model fittings of the earlier Wind sets, including those in a recent publication, which covers 2007 to 2009. This period (2010 - 2012) mainly covers the maximum portion of Solar Cycle 24. Between the previous and current interval, we document 5.7 years of MCs observations. For this interval, the occurrence frequency of MCs markedly increased in the last third of the time. In addition, over approximately the last six years, the MC type (i.e. the profile of the magnetic-field direction within an MC, such as North-to-South, South-to-North, all South) dramatically evolved to mainly North-to-South types when compared to earlier years. Furthermore, this evolution of MC type is consistent with global solar magnetic-field changes predicted by Bothmer and Rust (Coronal Mass Ejections, 139, 1997). Model fit parameters for the MCs are listed for 2010 - 2012. For the 5.7 year interval, the observed MCs are found to be slower, weaker in estimated axial magnetic-field intensity, and shorter in duration than those of the earlier 12.3 years, yielding much lower axial magnetic-field fluxes. For about the first half of this 5.7 year period, i.e. up to the end of 2009, there were very few associated MC-driven shock waves (distinctly fewer than the long-term average of about 50 % of MCs). But since 2010, such driven shocks have increased markedly, reflecting similar statistics as the long-term averages. We estimate that 56 % of the total observed MCs have upstream shocks when the full interval of 1995 - 2012 is considered. However, only 28 % of the total number of MCLs have driven shocks over the same period. Some interplanetary shocks during the 2010 - 2012 interval are seen to apparently occur without an obvious MC-driver, probably indicating an encounter with a distant flank of a MC-driven shock. Some of these may be driven by a different kind of structure, however.

Magnetic clouds↗

NASA NTRS2011

Magnetic Clouds at/near the 2007 - 2009 Solar Minimum: Frequency of Occurrence and Some Unusual Properties

Magnetic clouds (MCs) have been identified for the period 2007 2009 (at/near the recent solar minimum) from Wind data, then confirmed through MC parameter fitting using a force-free model. A dramatic increase in the frequency of occurrence of these events took place from the two early years of 2007 (with five MCs) and 2008 (one MC) compared to 2009 (12 MCs). This pattern approximately mirrors the occurrence-frequency profile that was observed over a three-year interval 12 years earlier, with eight events in 1995, four in 1996, and 17 in 1997, but decreased overall by a factor of 0.62 in number. However, the average estimated axial field strength taken over all of the 18 events of 2007 - 2009 (called the "recent period" here) was only 11.0 nT, whereas |BO| for the 29 events of 1995 - 1997 (called the "earlier period" ) was 16.5 nT. This 33% average drop in |BO| is more or less consistent with the decreased three-year average interplanetary magnetic field intensity between these two periods, which shows a 23% drop. In the earlier period, the MCs were clearly of mixed types but predominantly of the South-to-North type, whereas those in the recent period are almost exclusively the North-to-South type; this change is consistent with global solar field changes predicted by Bothmer and Rust (Geophys. Monogr. Ser. 99, 139, 1997). As we have argued in earlier work (Lepping and Wu, J. Geophys. Res. 112, A10103, 2007), this change should make it possible to carry out (accurate short-term) magnetic storm forecasting by predicting the latter part of an MC from the earlier part, using a good MC parameter-fitting model with real-time data from a spacecraft at L1, for example. The recent set s average duration is 15.2 hours, which is a 27% decrease compared to that of the earlier set, which had an average duration of 20.9 hours. In fact, all physical aspects of the recent MC set are shown to drop with respect to the earlier set; e.g., as well as the average internal magnetic field drop, the recent set had a somewhat low average speed of 379 km/s (5% drop), and the average diameter had a 24% drop. Hence, compared to the earlier set, the recent set consists of events that are smaller, slightly slower, and weaker in every respect (and fewer in number), but in a relative sense the two three-year sets have similar frequency-of-occurrence profiles. It is also interesting that the two sets have almost the same average axial inclinations, i.e., axial latitude approx. = 31deg (in GSE). These MC characteristics are compared to relevant solar features and their changes. A preliminary assessment of the statistics on possible shocks and pressure pulses upstream of these recent MCs yields the following: About 28% of the MCs, at most, had shocks, and 33% had shocks and/or pressure pulses. These are low values, since typically the percentage of cases with shocks is about 50%, and the percentage with shocks and/or pressure pulses is usually about 75%.

Lepping. R. P.↗

NASA NTRS2001

The Bastille Day Magnetic Clouds and Upstream Shocks: Near Earth Interplanetary Observations

The energetic charged particle, interplanetary magnetic field, and plasma characteristics of the 'Bastille Day' shock and ejecta/magnetic cloud events at 1 AU occurring over the days 14-16 July 2000 are described. Profiles of MeV (WIND/LEMT) energetic ions help to organize the overall sequence of events from the solar source to 1 AU. Stressed are analyses of an outstanding magnetic cloud (MC2) starting late on 15 July and its upstream shock about 4 hours earlier in WIND magnetic field and plasma data. Also analyzed is a less certain, but likely, magnetic cloud (MC1) occurring early on 15 July; this was separated from MC2 by its upstream shock and many heliospheric current sheet (HCS) crossings. Other HCS crossings occurred throughout the 3-day period. Overall this dramatic series of interplanetary events caused a large multi-phase magnetic storm with min Dst lower than -300 nT. The very fast solar wind speed (greater than or equal to 1100 km/s) in and around the front of MC2 (for near average densities) was responsible for a very high solar wind ram pressure driving in the front of the magnetosphere to geocentric distances estimated to be as low as approx. 5 R(sub E), much lower than the geosynchronous orbit radius. This was consistent with magnetic field observations from two GOES satellites which indicated they were in the magnetosheath for extended times. A static force free field model is used to fit the two magnetic cloud profiles providing estimates of the clouds' physical and geometrical properties. MC2 was much larger than MCI, but their axes were nearly antiparallel, and their magnetic fields had the same left-handed helicity. MC2's axis and its upstream shock normal were very close to being perpendicular to each other, as might be expected if the cloud were driving the shock at the time of observation. The estimated axial magnetic flux carried by MC2 was 52 x 10(exp 20) Mx, which is about 5 times the typical magnetic flux estimated for other magnetic clouds in the WIND data over its first 4 years and is 17 times the flux of MC1. This large flux is due to both the strong axially-directed field of MC2 (46.8 nT on the axis) and the large radius (R(sub 0) = 0.189 AU) of the flux tube. MC2's average speed is consistent with the expected transit time from a halo-CME to which it is apparently related.

Lepping, R. P.↗