Magnetopause attitudes during Ogo 5 crossings

The attitude of the magnetopause current layer is determined for 31 Ogo 5 crossings located at subsatellite local times between 0430 and 1020 and solar magnetospheric latitudes between −8.5° and +40°. A consistent difference in this attitude is observed between crossings in which the satellite leaves the magnetosphere and crossings in which it enters. The magnitude of this difference appears to be independent of the sun‐earth‐satellite angle. The ratio of the component of the magnetic field normal to the magnetopause to the total adjacent magnetospheric field is computed for each crossing. Ratios ranging from +0.1 to −0.2 are obtained where a plus sign signifies an outward directed component. The average ratio for those crossings in which the magnetosheath and magnetospheric fields subtended angles of greater than 90° is −0.03±0.09.