Simulations of the seasonal variations of the thermosphere and ionosphere using a coupled, three-dimensional, global model, including variations of the interplanetary magnetic field

Abstract

The University College London Thermospheric Model and the Sheffield University Ionospheric Convection Model have been integrated and improved to produce a self-consistent coupled global thermospheric/high latitude ionospheric model. The neutral thermospheric equations for wind velocity, composition, density and energy are solved, including their full interactions with the evolution of high latitude ion drift and plasma density, as these respond to convection, precipitation, solar photoionisation and changes of the thermosphere, particularly composition and wind velocity. Four 24 h Universal Time (UT) simulations have been performed. These correspond to positive and negative values of the IMF BY component at high solar activity, for a level of moderate geomagnetic activity, for each of the June and December solstices. In this paper we will describe the seasonal and IMF reponses of the coupled ionosphere/thermosphere system, as depicted by these simulations. In the winter polar region the diurnal migration of the polar convection pattern into and out of sunlight, together with ion transport, plays a major role in the plasma density structure at F-region altitudes. In the summer polar region an increase in the proportion of molecular to atomic species, created by the global seasonal thermospheric circulation and augmented by the geomagnetic forcing, controls the plasma densities at all Universal Times. The increased destruction of F-region ions in the summer polar region reduces the mean level of ionization to similar mean levels seen in winter, despite the increased level of solar insolation. In the upper thermosphere in winter for BY negative, a tongue of plasma is transported anti-sunward over the dusk side of the polar cap. To effect this transport, co-rotation and plasma convection work in the same sense. For IMF BY positive, plasma convection and co-rotation tend to oppose so that, despite similar cross-polar cap electric fields, a smaller polar cap plasma tongue is produced, distributed more centrally across the polar cap. In the summer polar cap, the enhanced plasma destruction due to enhancement of neutral molecular species and thus a changed ionospheric composition, causes F-region plasma minima at the same locations where the polar cap plasma maxima are produced in winter.