Quantifying and reducing uncertainty in the assimilative mapping of ionospheric electrodynamics. Doctoral thesis

Technical Report · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1989

OSTI ID:6903390

Knipp, D J

We applied the AMIE procedure, developed by Richmond and Kamide, to three periods: 23-24 July 1983, 18-19 Jan 1984 and 19 Sep 1984. The mapping procedure obtains optimal estimates of electrodynamic patterns from basis functions multiplied by an appropriate set of coefficients which are determined from a constrained least squares fit to the data. We show the impact of several additions to the procedure and analyze some of the geophysics implied by our results. New estimates of auroral conductance are incorporated from satellite particle detectors and a satellite X-ray imager. We use this new information to produce global estimates of conductance and to study the effect of uncertainty in those estimates on the estimates of the polar electric field structure. We also incorporate new (but somewhat indirect) observations relating to the electric field: satellite magnetometer data and the vertical component of the ground magnetometer data. Addition of these data, as well as, increasing the number of estimated coefficients tend to reduce the uncertainty in the electric field estimates. Our results demonstrate the ability of the AMIE procedure to define the temporal and spatial development of several important solar-wind-magnetosphere-ionospheric interactions. Mappings of ionospheric response to the interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) east-west component is in excellent agreement with currently accepted theory. We observe enhancements of DP1 and DP2 current systems.

• Research Organization: Air Force Inst. of Tech., Wright-Patterson AFB, OH (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6903390
• Report Number(s): AD-A-218057/8/XAB; AFIT/CI/CIA--89-144
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640201* -- Atmospheric Physics-- Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
AURORAE
CURRENTS
DISTRIBUTION
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
EARTH MAGNETOSPHERE
ELECTRIC CONDUCTIVITY
ELECTRIC CURRENTS
ELECTRIC FIELDS
ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES
ELECTRODYNAMICS
GEOPHYSICS
GLOBAL ASPECTS
INTERACTIONS
INTERPLANETARY SPACE
IONOSPHERE
LEAST SQUARE FIT
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MAGNETOMETERS
MAPPING
MAXIMUM-LIKELIHOOD FIT
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
NUMERICAL SOLUTION
OPTIMIZATION
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
PLANETARY IONOSPHERES
POLAR REGIONS
SATELLITES
SOLAR ACTIVITY
SOLAR WIND
SPACE
SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION