Open AccessA confirmation of the validity of the electric current distribution determined by a ground‐based magnetometer network
Author(s) -
Akasofu S.I.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
geophysical journal international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.302
H-Index - 168
eISSN - 1365-246X
pISSN - 0956-540X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-246x.1992.tb00089.x
Subject(s) - magnetometer , ionosphere , satellite , geophysics , magnetosphere , geodesy , current (fluid) , physics , computational physics , electric current , distribution (mathematics) , remote sensing , computer science , geology , magnetic field , mathematics , astronomy , mathematical analysis , quantum mechanics , thermodynamics
SUMMARY Determination of the distribution of electric currents at the ionospheric level by a ground‐based magnetometer network has been sought for by our pioneers, K. Birkeland and S. Chapman, from the beginning of this century. Both recognized difficulties associated with the determination. However, during the last decade, we have overcome the difficulties by establishing several meridian chains of magnetic observatories and developing several computer codes to invert the magnetic data. On the other hand, it has been difficult to confirm the current distribution thus obtained by a completely independent method. It is fortunate that an opportunity for the independent determination has arisen by a recent satellite‐based observation. It is shown that both the ground‐based and satellite‐based results agree fairly well with each other. Thus, a ground‐based magnetometer network has been proven to be able to determine the 3‐D current distribution which couples the magnetosphere and the ionosphere.