Ground magnetic perturbations associated with the standing toroidal mode oscillations in the magnetosphere-ionosphere system

Abstract

The behavior of toroidal mode oscillations of standing Alfven waves (refer to as standing Alfven oscillations) in the coupled magnetosphere-ionosphere system is investigated using a trapezoid-shape magnetosphere model. It is found that the magnetic perturbation is transmitted across the ionosphere differently in the two cases where the ionospheric electric field perturbation is static (Pedersen conductivity > Hall conductivity) and where it is inductive (Pedersen conductivity < Hall conductivity). It is noted that the ionospheric Hall current for the inductive condition shields the magnetic field perturbation. The north-south asymmetry of the conjugate ground magnetic perturbations is calculated by using a trapezoid model with the ionospheric and magnetospheric parameters based on the IGRF and IRI. It is revealed that the ionospheric electric field is almost static for the fundamental mode oscillation, whereas inductive for the higher harmonic ones. It is also found that the north-south asymmetry of the ground magnetic perturbations depends not only on the L-value but also on magnetic longitude; this is because the ionosphere and magnetic field conditions are not uniform as a function of longitude.