HR: 10:20h
AN: SM42A-01    [Abstracts]
TI: Ionospheric O+ Outflows in the Multi-Fluid LFM
AU: * Garcia, K S
EM: ksgarcia@bu.edu
AF: Boston University, Center for Space Physics 725 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 02215, United States
AU: Hughes, W
EM: hughes@bu.edu
AF: Boston University, Center for Space Physics 725 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 02215, United States
AU: Merkin, V G
EM: vgm@bu.edu
AF: Boston University, Center for Space Physics 725 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 02215, United States
AU: Lyon, J G
EM: John.G.Lyon@Dartmouth.EDU
AF: Dartmouth College, Department of Physics and Astronomy 6127 Wilder Laboratory, Hanover, NH 03755-3528, United States
AB: The presence of O+ ions of ionospheric origin is known to significantly modify the shape of and flows within the magnetosphere, yet until recently most global magnetospheric MHD models could not include this plasma source. We present initial results of the newly-developed multi-fluid version of the Lyon-Fedder-Mobarry (LFM) global MHD code. The ionospheric O+ source is implemented by an outflow module using the Strangeway formula [Strangeway et al., 2005]. The module takes as input the Poynting flux from the LFM and outputs O+ density and velocity at the ionospheric boundary of the LFM. Using idealized solar wind conditions to drive the sunward boundary of the code, we examine the resulting outflow at the LFM inner boundary and investigate how the ionospheric O+ outflow affects the configuration and dynamics of the magnetosphere. In this initial study we focus on global characteristics of the magnetosphere such as its global geometry (the location of the night-side reconnection line, in particular), the cross-polar cap potential, and ionospheric and magnetospheric convection patterns.
DE: 2736 Magnetosphere/ionosphere interactions (2431)
DE: 2740 Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics
DE: 2753 Numerical modeling
SC: SPA-Magnetospheric Physics [SM]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting