Fe, O, and C Charge States Associated With Quiescent Versus Active Current Sheets in the Solar Wind
Abstract
Ulysses MAG data were used to locate the heliospheric current sheet in data from 1991 through 2006. The purpose was to characterize typical charge states for Fe, O, and C in the vicinity of the current sheet and provide insight into the physical sources for these charge states in the corona. A study of He/H around the current sheets has led to a clear distinction between quiescent current sheets at times of low solar activity and active current sheets associated with magnetic clouds (and, presumably, ICMEs). It has been shown that high ionization state Fe is produced in the corona in current sheets associated with CMEs through spectroscopic observations of the corona and through in situ detection at Ulysses. Here we show that the ionization state of Fe is typically only enhanced around active current sheets. The ionization states of O and C are commonly enhanced around both quiescent and active current sheets, but the enhancements are much larger around active current sheets. This is consistent with UV coronal spectroscopy, which has shown that reconnection in current sheets behind CMEs leads to high temperatures not typically seen above quiet streamers.
- Publication:
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AGU Spring Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- May 2008
- Bibcode:
- 2008AGUSMSH44A..07S
- Keywords:
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- 2134 Interplanetary magnetic fields;
- 2164 Solar wind plasma;
- 2169 Solar wind sources;
- 7509 Corona;
- 7599 General or miscellaneous