Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes
Although global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models have increased in sophistication and are now at the forefront of modeling Space Weather, there is still no clear understanding of how well these models replicate the observed ionospheric current systems. Without a full understanding and treatment of t...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fspas.2023.1212735/full |
| _version_ | 1797741391216902144 |
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| author | Tre’Shunda James Ramon E. Lopez Alex Glocer |
| author_facet | Tre’Shunda James Ramon E. Lopez Alex Glocer |
| author_sort | Tre’Shunda James |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Although global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models have increased in sophistication and are now at the forefront of modeling Space Weather, there is still no clear understanding of how well these models replicate the observed ionospheric current systems. Without a full understanding and treatment of the ionospheric current systems, global models will have significant shortcomings that will limit their use. In this study we focus on reproducing observed seasonal interhemispheric asymmetry in ionospheric currents using the Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF). We find that SWMF does reproduce the linear relationship between the electrojets and the FACs, despite the underestimation of the currents’ magnitudes. Quantitatively, we find that at best SWMF is only capturing approximately 60% of the observed current. We also investigate how varying F10.7 effects the ionospheric potential and currents during the summer and winter. We find that simulations ran with higher F10.7 result in lower ionospheric potentials. Additionally, we find that the models do not always replicate the expected behavior of the currents with varying F10.7. This work points to a needed improvement in ionospheric conductance models. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:26:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-2040fdf82e3c44ad9010d1dc2371d75a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-987X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:26:01Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-2040fdf82e3c44ad9010d1dc2371d75a2023-08-18T06:59:38ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences2296-987X2023-08-011010.3389/fspas.2023.12127351212735Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudesTre’Shunda James0Ramon E. Lopez1Alex Glocer2Physics Department, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, United StatesPhysics Department, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, United StatesNASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, United StatesAlthough global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models have increased in sophistication and are now at the forefront of modeling Space Weather, there is still no clear understanding of how well these models replicate the observed ionospheric current systems. Without a full understanding and treatment of the ionospheric current systems, global models will have significant shortcomings that will limit their use. In this study we focus on reproducing observed seasonal interhemispheric asymmetry in ionospheric currents using the Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF). We find that SWMF does reproduce the linear relationship between the electrojets and the FACs, despite the underestimation of the currents’ magnitudes. Quantitatively, we find that at best SWMF is only capturing approximately 60% of the observed current. We also investigate how varying F10.7 effects the ionospheric potential and currents during the summer and winter. We find that simulations ran with higher F10.7 result in lower ionospheric potentials. Additionally, we find that the models do not always replicate the expected behavior of the currents with varying F10.7. This work points to a needed improvement in ionospheric conductance models.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fspas.2023.1212735/fullFACSMEMHDSWMFF10.7asymmetry |
| spellingShingle | Tre’Shunda James Ramon E. Lopez Alex Glocer Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences FAC SME MHD SWMF F10.7 asymmetry |
| title | Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes |
| title_full | Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes |
| title_fullStr | Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes |
| title_short | Quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed Birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes |
| title_sort | quantifying the ability of magnetohydrodynamic models to reproduce observed birkeland current and auroral electrojet magnitudes |
| topic | FAC SME MHD SWMF F10.7 asymmetry |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fspas.2023.1212735/full |
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