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Magnetic clouds with east/west orientated axes observed by Ulysses during solar cycle 23
Author(s) -
Rees A.,
Forsyth R. J.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2003gl017296
Subject(s) - coronal mass ejection , magnetic cloud , interplanetary spaceflight , northern hemisphere , southern hemisphere , solar cycle 23 , latitude , range (aeronautics) , solar cycle , physics , geology , astronomy , solar wind , plasma , materials science , quantum mechanics , composite material
The second Ulysses orbit of the Sun has provided a unique opportunity for the study of the interplanetary manifestation of coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) over a wide range of heliographic latitudes. The Ulysses dataset between July 1995 and mid April 2003 has been surveyed for magnetic clouds (MCs), a subset of ICMEs. As a result of the rising solar activity during this time, ICMEs were observed over a wide range of heliographic latitudes. By fitting a constant α, force‐free flux rope model to each event we determine whether the local axis orientation of the MCs are directed in an eastward or a westward sense. We show that during this period in solar cycle 23, those MCs whose hemispheric origin is clear display a trend, with MCs in the southern hemisphere having predominantly westward directed local axes and those in the northern hemisphere having eastward directed local axes.