Using information theory to untangle the drivers and response modes in the solar wind-magnetosphere system under strong and weak driving

The solar wind-magnetosphere-ionosphere system is nonlinear. The traditional correlational analysis tool may be inadequate because it assumes linear relationships. On the other hand, information theoretic tools such as mutual information, conditional mutual information, and transfer entropy, which can handle nonlinearities in the system, can be useful. Many solar wind drivers are correlated or anti-correlated with one another. The magnetospheric response to solar wind drivers can have directly driven and/or internally driven components. When the solar wind drivers are strong, the magnetospheric response can be more linear and immediate, but when the solar wind drivers are weak, the internal drivers can play a more important role in determining the overall dynamics of the magnetosphere. The magnetospheric response to internal drivers appear to be nonlinear. We present an example in which we use information theory to untangle the drivers of the radiation belt electrons. We also present an example in which we use information theory to uncover the external driving vs. the internal driving of the magnetosphere under strong and weak solar wind drivers. The various magnetospheric response modes of storms are identified and analyzed.