Voyager 1 observations of the interstellar magnetic field and the transition from the heliosheath
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Code 673, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)
Voyager 1 (V1) has been observing interstellar magnetic fields for more than one year beginning ≈2012/209, when V1 crossed a current sheet, a 'CS0' having the structure of a tangential discontinuity. The inclination of this current sheet is consistent with an interstellar magnetic field B draped on a blunt heliopause. Two other current sheets (sector boundaries) were observed at ≈2012/167 and ≈2011/276 with high inclinations (99° ± 10° and 89° ± 10°, respectively). From 2013.0 to ≈2013.6, the difference between the azimuthal angle λ of B from the Parker spiral angle at the latitude 34.°6 of V1 was λ – λ{sub P} = 22° ± 3° and the corresponding difference of the elevation angle δ was δ – δ{sub P} = 23° ± 8°. During 2012, the deviation from the Parker spiral angle was somewhat smaller. The interstellar magnetic field has a 'west to east polarity,' opposite to the direction of planetary motions. The magnitude of B varied smoothly in the range 0.38-0.59 nT with an average B = 0.486 ± 0.045 after 2012/237.7. The transition from heliosheath to interstellar magnetic fields is related to a 'two-step' increase in the cosmic ray intensity observed by V1 from ≈2012.30 to ≈2012.65. The first step increase began near the end of an unusual 'away-polarity' sector, and it reached a plateau when V1 moved into a 'toward-polarity' sector that ended at CS0. The second step increase began slowly after V1 crossed CS0, and it ended abruptly at 2012/237.728.
- OSTI ID:
- 22357214
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 784, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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