Pioneer 10 observation of the solar wind proton temperature heliocentric gradient
Abstract
Solar wind isotropic proton temperatures as measured out to 12.2 AU heliocentric distance by the Ames plasma analyzer aboard Pioneer 10 are presented as consecutive averages over three Carrington solar rotations and discussed. The weighted least-squares fit of average temperature to heliocentric radial distance, R, yields the power law R-.52. These average proton temperatures are not correlated as well with Pioneer 10's heliocentric radial distance (-.85) as are the corresponding average Zurich sunspot numbers Rz (-.95). Consequently, it is difficult to isolate the spatial gradient in the Pioneer 10 solar wind proton temperatures using that data alone.
- Publication:
-
NASA STI/Recon Technical Report N
- Pub Date:
- August 1978
- Bibcode:
- 1978STIN...7831030M
- Keywords:
-
- Pioneer 10 Space Probe;
- Solar Probes;
- Solar Protons;
- Solar Wind;
- Temperature Gradients;
- Interplanetary Medium;
- Least Squares Method;
- Plasma Diagnostics;
- Radial Distribution;
- Solar Wind Velocity;
- Solar Physics