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The northern edge of the band of solar wind variability: Ulysses at ∼4.5 AU
Author(s) -
Gosling J. T.,
Bame S. J.,
Feldman W. C.,
McComas D. J.,
Riley P.,
Goldstein B. E.,
Neugebauer M.
Publication year - 1997
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 - 10.1029/97gl00001
Subject(s) - northern hemisphere , coronal mass ejection , latitude , solar wind , coronal hole , physics , geology , southern hemisphere , enhanced data rates for gsm evolution , atmospheric sciences , astronomy , plasma , telecommunications , quantum mechanics , computer science
Ulysses observations reveal that the northern edge of the low‐latitude band of solar wind variability at ∼4.5 AU was located at N30° in the latter part of 1996 when solar activity was at a minimum. This edge latitude is intermediate between edge latitudes found during previous encounters with the band edge along different portions of Ulysses' polar orbit about the Sun. Corotating interaction regions, CIRs, near the northern edge of the band were tilted in such a manner that the forward and reverse shocks bounding the CIRs were propagating equatorward and poleward, respectively, providing definite confirmation that CIRs have opposed tilts in the opposite solar hemispheres. No shocks or coronal mass ejections, CMEs, were detected during the ∼1.5 y traverse of the northern, high‐latitude northern hemisphere; however, at the northern edge of the band of variability an expanding CME was observed that was driving a shock into the high‐speed wind.