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Shape of the magnetosphere
Author(s) -
Wu C. C.
Publication year - 1983
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/gl010i007p00545
Subject(s) - magnetosphere , magnetohydrodynamics , magnetopause , physics , cusp (singularity) , solar wind , geophysics , magnetosphere of saturn , magnetosheath , magnetosphere of jupiter , current sheet , magnetic field , computational physics , geometry , mathematics , quantum mechanics
The shape of the magnetosphere has been studied by using a global MHD model of the magnetosphere. It is found that MHD and the Chapman‐Ferraro models agree in total magnetopause current distributions, but that the MHD model presents a very different physical picture from that of the Chapman‐Ferraro model. In the MHD model with B IMF = 0 or northward, the cusp is not exposed directly to the solar wind because the dayside magnetic field lines drape around the nightside magnetosphere. Furthermore, in the MHD model a current sheet exists above the cusp region.