Dynamics of the AMPERE Region 1 Birkeland current oval during storms, substorms and steady magnetospheric convection

Using radial current densities provided by the Active Magnetosphere and Planetary Electrodynamics Response Experiment (AMPERE) we employ a fitting scheme to identify the location of the maximum Region 1 field-aligned (Birkeland) current at all magnetic local times. We call this parameter the "R1 oval" and we investigate its behavior during various modes of magnetospheric activity such as storms, substorms and steady magnetospheric convection (SMCs). Results show the following: (1) during substorms the radius of the R1 oval undergoes a cyclic inflation and contraction which matches the standard paradigm for substorm growth (loading) and expansion (unloading); (2) during SMCs the R1 oval is relatively steady consistent with balanced dayside and nightside reconnection during these events; and (3) during magnetic storms the size of the R1 oval is strongly correlated with the strength of the ring current specified by the Sym-H index. We also examine the behavior of the R1 oval in the northern and southern hemispheres simultaneously as a function of season in an effort to understand the role that internal magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling influences may play in modulating the response of the magnetosphere during these various types of events.