HR: 16:30h
AN: SH54A-03 INVITED     [Abstracts]
TI: Using the Space Physics Great Observatory to study magnetospheric coupling: Data-modeling closure
AU: * Baker, D N
EM: daniel.baker@lasp.colorado.edu
AF: LASP/Univ. of Colorado, 1234 Innovation Drive, Boulder, CO 80303-7814 United States
AB: The near-Earth region responds powerfully to changes of the Sun and consequent disturbances in the solar wind. The Earth's outer magnetosphere is often greatly distorted and the radiation belts and inner magnetosphere show pronounced differences in their characteristics as the Sun's magnetic and solar wind plasma properties change. Solar coronal holes produce regular, recurrent solar wind streams in geospace, often enhancing highly relativistic electrons and causing recurrent magnetic storms. These phenomena are characteristics of the approach to solar minimum (that is the phase of the 11-year solar cycle in which we presently are situated). On the other hand, major geomagnetic disturbances associated with aperiodic coronal mass ejections occur most frequently around solar maximum. We describe the observational and modeling results that demonstrate differences throughout geospace during the course of the 11-year solar cycle. We focus especially upon coupling from the solar wind to the magnetosphere and then from the magnetosphere to the ionosphere-atmosphere system. We describe present modeling and we address key challenges. Vastly different spatial and temporal scales must be addressed and coupling codes must be synchronized to a high degree. The question of how available (sparse) data are assimilated into global-scale models remains a major challenge to the community. This talk provides a broad overview of the present status and future challenges inherent in such modeling and data analyses.
DE: 2716 Energetic particles: precipitating
DE: 2720 Energetic particles: trapped
DE: 2730 Magnetosphere: inner
DE: 2788 Magnetic storms and substorms (7954)
SC: SPA-Solar and Heliospheric Physics [SH]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005