M-I Coupling: Quantifying High Latitude Electric Field and Conductance Variability

Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio TX

Investigators

Abstract

The investigators will study electric field and conductance variability in the high latitude ionosphere. The study will be conducted using the Assimilative Mapping of Ionospheric Electrodynamics (AMIE) model for a large number of intervals for which a variety of ground-based and space-based measurements are available. The study addresses three scientific questions: (1) What are the spatial and temporal scales of structures in the electric field in the ionosphere? (2) What are the spatial and temporal scales of structures in the ionospheric conductance? (3) How do the structured electric field and conductance affect the global Joule heating? The variability of electric fields and conductances from the AMIE model will be summarized as a function of magnetic latitude, magnetic local time, and geomagnetic activity. The analysis will provide guidance on the amount of variability being omitted in models that have coarser spatial and temporal scales. It also provides guidance on the geophysical processes that need to be understood before physics-based models can completely capture the variability and its effects. The ultimate objective is a better understanding of the coupling between the thermosphere, ionosphere, and magnetosphere during geomagnetically disturbed conditions.