Polar cap arcs correlated with solar wind entry at the high latitude magnetosphere

Abstract

Polar cap arcs are sun-aligned aurora structures occurring during northward turnings of the Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) B z component. At the same time, a new region of solar wind entry at the high latitude magnetosphere, tailward of the cusp region, was found recently at the periods of northward IMF B z . We propose a study to see the relationship of these entry events with the transpolar arc formation. Data of Global Ultraviolet Imager (GUVI) onboard TIMED mission is examined to see the transpolar aurora arcs during the given time periods of the solar wind entry. Initial results show that in approximately 20% of cases transpolar arcs occur related to the solar wind entry processes.