Major magnetic storm of March 13-14, 1989 and associated ionosphere effects. (Reannouncement with new availability information)
The geomagnetic storm of March 1989 was the largest geomagnetic storm of the decade and one of the largest of the century. The authors review many of the `high-latitude` ionospheric observations that were made during this storm. Most of the data presented here comes from the polar-orbiting satellites of the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) series. A review of the DMSP data shows that most of the high-latitude, top-side ionospheric disturbance occurred on March 13 and 14. The magnitudes of the particle energy flux (ergs cm 2) (1 erg = 10{minus}7 J) and Joule heating were not unusually large for a storm, but the area of the energy deposition, and thus the total energy deposition, was extremely large. At the peak of the storm (minimum in D(st) (disturbance with storm time) and midnight boundary indices) the auroral particle precipitation extended down to magnetic latitudes of 40.1 deg or L = 1.71 while the polar edge of the auroral zone expanded poleward only slightly. The storm was also a period of intense, hemispherically symmetric polar rain fluxes. The auroral electric field was clearly observed down to magnetic latitude of 35 deg. This is consistent with the auroral electrojet (AE) current density and the AE index having a saturation level beyond which the index will increase slowly or not at all as more energy is transferred from the solar wind to the magnetosphere, but the cross polar-cap potential during this storm shows no evidence of saturation. There are only two visible light images from DMSP available near the peak of the storm.
- Research Organization:
- Phillips Lab., Hanscom AFB, MA (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 210756
- Report Number(s):
- AD-A-267272/3/XAB; PL-TR-93-2143; TRN: 60640017
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 30 Jun 1993
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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