South Pole Dayside Auroral 630 nm OI Intensity Measurements at Solar Minimum

An examination is made of Antarctic dayside auroras to establish how they relate to solar wind strength under the quiet conditions of the recent extended solar minimum when the solar wind pressure is weak and the IMF Bz is small. It is found on the many days of observations that the aurora is detected even under the most stable and quiet conditions. On such occasions the 630 nm OI emission can be as low as 50R but it is unambiguously detectable and continuously through each noon. This is above an airglow intensity of about 30R. For these quiet conditions there is no evident relation between the solar wind dynamic pressure or the IMF Bz and the dayside auroral intensity. This suggests that there is no effective reconnection under these minimal conditions and the particle source for these dayside auroras could be within the magnetosphere.