Intermediate-term periodicities in relativistic solar electron fluences during solar cycles 22 and 23

In this paper, we have investigated the intermediate-term periodicities of the relativistic (E > 10 MeV) solar electron flares measured by IMP-8 satellite of NASA for the time period of 1986–2001. This period of investigation includes the entire solar cycle 22; ascending, maximum and a part of descending phase of the current solar cycle 23. To determine accurately the occurrence rate of electron flux, we have employed three different spectral decomposition techniques, viz. fast Fourier transformation (FFT); maximum entropy method (MEM) and Lomb–Scargle periodogram analysis method. For solar cycle 22, in the low frequency range, power spectrum analysis exhibits statistically significant periodicities at ∼706, ∼504 and ∼392 days. In the intermediate frequency range, we have found a series of significant periodicities ∼294, ∼221, ∼153, ∼86, ∼73 and ∼66 days. For short term, periodicities of ∼21–23, ∼31 and ∼37 days were found in power spectrum. When solar cycle 23 is considered the significant periodicities are ∼20, ∼23, ∼29, ∼39, ∼54, ∼63, ∼118, ∼133 and ∼154 days. These results provide evidence that the best known Rieger period (∼153 days), appeared in the high energetic electron flux data for cycle 22 and also likely during maxima of cycle 23. The existence of these periodicities has been discussed in the light of earlier results.     

Time variations of cosmic-ray helium isotopes with BESS-Polar I

The Balloon-borne Experiment with a Superconducting Spectrometer (BESS) is configured with a solenoidal superconducting magnet and a suite of precision particle detectors, including time-of-flight hodoscopes based on plastic scintillators, a silica-aerogel Cherenkov detector, and a high resolution tracking system with a central jet-type drift chamber. The charges of incident particles are determined from energy losses in the scintillators. Their magnetic rigidities (momentum/charge) are measured by reconstructing each particle trajectory in the magnetic field, and their velocities are obtained by using the time-of-flight system. Together, these measurements can accurately identify helium isotopes among the incoming cosmic-ray helium nuclei up to energies in the GeV per nucleon region. The BESS-Polar I instrument flew for 8.5 days over Antarctica from December 13th to December 21st, 2004. Its long-duration flight and large geometric acceptance allow the time variations of isotopic fluxes to be studied for the first time. The time variations of helium isotope fluxes are presented here for rigidities from 1.2 to 2.5 GV and results are compared to previously reported proton data and neutron monitor data.     

Anthropogenic trigger of substorms and energetic particles precipitations

The high-frequency (HF) emission in near-Earth space from various powerful transmitters (radio communications, radars, broadcasting, universal time and navigation stations, etc.) form an integral part of the modern world that it cannot do without. In particular, special-purpose research facilities equipped with powerful HF transmitters are used successfully for plasma experiments and local modification of the ionosphere. In this work, we are using the results of a complex space-ground experiment to show that exposure of the subauroral region to HF emission can not only cause local changes in the ionosphere, but can also trigger processes in the magnetosphere–ionosphere system that result in intensive substorm activity (precipitations of high-energy particles, aurorae, significant variations in the ionospheric parameters and, as a consequence, in radio propagation conditions).     

Short-term periodicities in the downward longwave radiation and their associations with cosmic ray and solar interplanetary data

In this study downward longwave (LW) atmospheric radiation data for the period of 2014–2020 were used to search for short-term periodicities using fast Fourier transform (FFT). Several local peaks in the power spectrum density were found and established. The time series exhibits a series of significant peaks (exceeding the 95% confidence limit), such as at 273 days, 227 days, 200 days, 178 days, 157 days, 110 days, 120 days, 87 days, 73 days, 53–56 days, 35–30 days, 25–27 days, 21 days, 13 days, and 9–10 days.Moreover, cosmic ray data from KACST muon detector and the Oulu neutron monitor, as well as the data for the solar radio flux at 10.7 cm (F10.7 cm), Dst index, and solar wind speed for the same period as the LW data, were used to look for common cyclic variations and periodicities matching those found in the LW radiation. This was done to investigate the possible effect of the solar activity parameters on LW radiation. Several common periodicities were observed in the spectra of all the variables considered, such as 227 days, 154–157 days, 25–27 days, and 21 days. Some of the periodicities found in the LW radiation spectrum can be attributed to the modulation of the cosmic ray intensity by solar activity. Others are attributed to the disturbances in the interplanetary magnetic field. Based on the spectral results, we suggest that the solar signals may directly or indirectly affect the variations of the downward longwave radiation, which in turn may affect climate change.     

Temporal variation of the arterial pressure in healthy young people and its relation to geomagnetic activity in Mexico

We present a study of the temporal behavior of the systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure for a sample of 51 normotensive, healthy volunteers, 18 men and 33 women with an average age of 19 years old in Mexico City, Mexico, during April and May, 2008. We divided the data by sex along the circadian rhythm. Three geomagnetic storms occurred during the studied time-span. The strongest one, a moderate storm, is attributed to a coronal hole border that reached the Earth. The ANOVA test applied to the strongest storm showed that even though we are dealing with a moderate geomagnetic storm, there are statistically significant responses of the blood pressure. The superposed epoch analysis during a three-day window around the strongest storm shows that on average the largest changes occurred for the SBP. Moreover, the SBP largest increases occurred two days before and one day after this storm, and women are the most sensitive group as they present larger SBP and DBP average changes than men. Finally, given the small size of the sample, we cannot generalize our results.     

Physical implications of discrepancy between summer and winter PC indices observed in the course of magnetospheric substorms

The PC index based on a statistically justified relationship between the polar cap magnetic activity and the interplanetary electric field E_KL has been derived as a value standardized for the E_KL intensity regardless of season, UT and hemisphere. As a result, the summer and winter PC indices are consistent with one another under ordinary conditions. Discrepancies between the summer and winter PC indices arising in the course of magnetospheric substorms are analyzed in this paper. It is argued that the channel of enhanced conductivity, formed in the auroral oval owing to intense auroral particle precipitation, strongly improves the conditions for closure of the Region 1 field-aligned currents in the winter dark polar region but only trivially affects the conditions of the Region 1 FAC closure in the summer sunlit ionosphere. Since the coefficients describing the relationship between E_KL and the polar cap magnetic activity were derived for statistically justified (i.e., mean) conditions, their application to such abnormal situation, as intense field-aligned currents in the winter dark polar region, leads to overestimation of the winter PC index. The summer and winter PC indices level off as soon as the intense auroral particle precipitation terminates and the auroral ionosphere in the winter and summer polar caps returns to the ordinary (statistically justified) state.     

Solar, geomagnetic and cosmic ray intensity changes, preceding the cyclone appearances around Mexico

Recently it has been suggested that there exist specific changes in the cosmic ray intensity and some solar and geomagnetic parameters during the days, preceding the hurricane appearances over the North Atlantic Ocean. To understand better these phenomena, data for all hurricanes born not only over the Atlantic but also over the Pacific waters in the last 55 years that hit the Mexican borders were elaborated. As basic hurricane parameters the maximum rotational velocity and the estimated total energy were used. To avoid any interference all hurricanes, overlapping the preceding ones with more than 20 days were not included. Then the behavior of the cosmic ray (CR) intensity, the sunspot (SS) numbers, and the geomagnetic parameters (AP) and (KP) in 35 days prior and 20 days after the cyclone start were investigated. The CR, SS, AP and KP showed much more intensive disturbances in the periods preceding and following the hurricane appearance. For SS this disturbance gradually increase with the hurricane strength. A characteristic peak in the CR intensity appears before the hurricane start. But its place varies between 5 and 20 days before that start. Specific changes were observed in the SS. For major hurricanes they begins sometimes more than 20 days in advance. The AP and the KP show series of bursts, spread over the whole period of 30 preceding days. The obtained results from the performed correlational analysis are enough interesting to motivate a further statistical analysis with more precise techniques: in particular a common periodicity of 30 years found in the number of tropical storms landing into Mexico, the averaged rotational wind velocity and the ACE must be studied in connection with the solar Hale cycle. Using coherence wavelet spectral analysis we present a comparative study between one terrestrial and one cosmophysical phenomena that presumable influence hurricanes development: African dust outbreaks versus cosmic rays for all North Atlantic tropical cyclones. It is shown that the cosmophysical influence cannot be considered as a negligible effect.     

Statistical study of twist values of transequatorial loops and the relationship with flares

In this paper, the twist values of ‘S’-shape transequatorial loops (TLs) from 1991 to 2001 are calculated, GOES soft X-ray flares dataset of the active regions connected by these TLs are investigated. The result shows the twist value of the TLs has a weak relation with the flare flux. There is no clear correlation between the twist value and the distance between the footpoint of TLs and location of flare in the corresponding active regions.     

Global solar magnetic field evolution inferred from geomagnetic variations

I have analyzed geomagnetic disturbance index C9, mean solar magnetic field observed at Stanford Solar Observatory for the interval January 13, 1976 – December 30, 1993. It has been established a good correspondence between high-intensity geomagnetic recurrent and solar magnetic field patterns during whole period analyzed. A surprising thing is that the behavior of the solar mean field and interplanetary medium in the latest two solar cycles is very similar. Geomagnetic activity variations actually could serve as an ecliptic monitor of solar magnetic field structure and its evolution.