Outflow in global magnetohydrodynamics as a function of a passive inner boundary source

Abstract

Numerous studies of the terrestrial magnetosphere that use global magnetohydrodynamic codes have found that the model's inner boundary can act as a significant source of plasma, even if the radial velocity about the boundary is held at zero. Though inherent in many models, this “de facto outflow” is poorly understood. This work uses the Block Adaptive Tree Solar Wind Roe‐type Upwind Scheme MHD model to investigate the behavior of this type of outflow as a function of boundary conditions and solar wind drivers. It is found that even for temporally and spatially constant boundary conditions, the mass is accelerated away from the body in a dynamic manner. Fluxes organize into cusp, polar cap, and auroral zone concentrations. Pressure gradient forces appear predominantly responsible for cusp and polar cap outflow, while the Lorentz force, resulting from field‐aligned current systems, is the strongest driver of outflow in other regions. Integrated fluxes probed just outside of the inner boundary vary linearly as a function of cross polar cap potential and solar wind dynamic pressure. The resulting dynamics strongly resemble patterns found in in situ measurements, while net fluences agree within an order of magnitude. Two free parameters, inner boundary mass density and composition, can strongly affect results. Accounting for these unknowns is likely best left to physics‐based or empirical specifications of outflow. Despite this, such outflow appears to be an acceptable proxy.