Variations in the quasi-static electric field in the near-Earth’s atmosphere during geomagnetic storms in November 2004

Abstract

The effects of the geomagnetic storms of November 8 and 10, 2004, in variations in the strength and power spectra of the electric field in the near-Earth’s atmosphere in Kamchatka were studied, together with the meteorological and geophysical phenomena observed simultaneously. A sequence of strong solar flares was shown to cause an anomalous increase in air temperature and humidity. This resulted in the excitation of anomalously strong thunderstorm processes in the atmosphere during the storm of November 8 and made it impossible to distinguish the effects associated with cosmic rays on this background. During the storm of November 10, on the background of weak variations in meteorological parameters, an increase in the strength and intensity of power spectra of the electric field on the day before the storm of November 10 was detected; it was followed by an attenuation of these parameters on the date of the storm. These effects were supposed to be associated with the action of cosmic rays on currents of the global electric circuit. It was shown that the influence of the Forbush effect of galactic cosmic rays in the power spectrum of the electric field first of all shows as the amplification of the component with the period T ∼ 48 h; in variations in humidity, the effect shows as the amplification of the component with T ∼ 24 h. Cause-and-effect relationships between variations in the electric field strength and the horizontal component of the geomagnetic field were shown to be absent both under the conditions of “fair weather” and during the storm of November 10. A diurnal negative-difference atmospheric pressure was detected on the second day after the geomagnetic storms of November 8 and 10.