Relativistic Electron Acceleration and Loss During Small Geomagnetic Storms

Relativistic electron precipitation events were detected by early BARREL (Balloon Array for Radiation-belt Relativistic Electron Losses) payloads during small geomagnetic storms (minimum DST greater than -50nT), coincident with significant enhancement of relativistic electron fluxes at geosynchronous as measured by GOES. Such small geomagnetic storms have not been studied as in depth as larger storms, even though they are capable of pumping-up or depleting the radiation belts equally as extremely as their larger counterparts, this study finds. Since much of the past few years has been quiet, it is necessary to extend previous studies to include smaller storms. We perform a statistical analysis of relativistic electron flux response at geosynchronous to small geomagnetic storms over an 11 year period (1989-2000) using LANL satellite data, similar to previous studies of larger geomagnetic storms. We investigate changes in relativistic electron flux response with various solar wind parameters, as well as extend the statistical analysis of small and large geomagnetic storms with data sets now available from the Van Allen Probes.