Magnetosphere Energy Dynamics in 3D, Comparison to the Virial Theorem and Quantification of Macro Scale Dynamics During a Simulated Storm Event

Ground magnetic perturbations are due to dynamics within the magnetosphere ionosphere system as well as coupling with the solar wind. Global simulation is well suited to study the entire system at once with self-consistent physics. In this work the magnetopause location is identified from Space Weather Modeling Framework (SWMF) output at 1min cadence for a simulated event to a fixed downstream distance. Preliminary results of total energy integrated over the magnetosphere volume correlates well with Disturbance Storm Time (DST) index (attached figure). Following up on the initial results the magnetosphere volume is analyzed for spatial distribution of energy in terms of total energy, as well as hydrodynamic energy and magnetic energy. The relative contribution to magnetic perturbation at the Earth's center is determined for subregions and energy types using the Biot-Savart law and Virial Theorem. Comparisons with in situ and ground based observations are made to identify areas of high and low simulation confidence.