Solar wind, energetic particles, and coronal magnetic structure: The first year of solar cycle 20

Abstract

Coronal magnetic field structure is investigated by using solar and interplanetary magnetic polarity measurements and by using observations of solar wind plasma and energetic particles during the first 8 months of 1965. When it is compared by using all data available during this period, interplanetary polarity (mapped back to the high corona by using observed solar wind velocities) correlates best with mid-latitude solar polarity. However, when it is compared at only those times when energetic particles were present in the interplanetary medium and again at times of fast solar wind, the best correlation is with equatorial solar polarity. From these results we infer that energetic particles and fast solar wind escape preferentially from equatorial coronal magnetic structures which are open, while the more usual equatorial structures at this time are closed.