Magnetic field draping about coronal mass ejecta

Conference · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1987

OSTI ID:5950805

McComas, D J; Gosling, J T

Fast coronal mass ejecta (CMEs) accelerate and deflect the slower moving solar wind plasma which piles up ahead of them as they propagate out through the heliosphere. This acceleration and deflection, in turn, causes the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) imbedded in the upstream solar wind to drape about the ejecta. Draping should cause substantial out-of-the-ecliptic magnetic fields at some locations ahead of CMEs, and radial fields behind and along the flanks. At the Earth, draping can be an important factor in the generation of some magnetic storms and substorms, while in the outer heliosphere draping may produce very large magnetotail-like configurations, somewhat analogous to those observed behind Venus and comets. 17 refs.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Lab., NM (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• OSTI ID: 5950805
• Report Number(s): LA-UR-87-3643; CONF-8708141-4; ON: DE88001805
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640201* -- Atmospheric Physics-- Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ACCELERATION
ATMOSPHERES
CORONA DISCHARGES
ELECTRIC DISCHARGES
HELIOSPHERE
INTERPLANETARY SPACE
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAGNETIC STORMS
PLANETS
SHOCK WAVES
SOLAR ACTIVITY
SOLAR ATMOSPHERE
SOLAR WIND
SPACE
VENUS PLANET