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Article
Information Theoretical Approach to Discovering Solar Wind Drivers of the Outer Radiation Belt
Faculty Publications
  • Simon Wing, Johns Hopkins University
  • Jay R. Johnson, Andrews University
  • Enrico Camporeale, Center for Mathematics and Computer Science, Amsterdam
  • Geoffrey D. Reeves, Los Alamos National Laboratory
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-1-2016
Keywords
  • Solar wind drivers,
  • outer radiation belt
Abstract

The solar wind-magnetosphere system is nonlinear. The solar wind drivers of geosynchronous electrons with energy range of 1.8–3.5 MeV are investigated using mutual information, conditional mutual information (CMI), and transfer entropy (TE). These information theoretical tools can establish linear and nonlinear relationships as well as information transfer. The information transfer from solar wind velocity (Vsw) to geosynchronous MeV electron flux (Je) peaks with a lag time of 2 days. As previously reported, Je is anticorrelated with solar wind density (nsw) with a lag of 1 day. However, this lag time and anticorrelation can be attributed at least partly to the Je(t + 2 days) correlation with Vsw(t) and nsw(t + 1 day) anticorrelation with Vsw(t). Analyses of solar wind driving of the magnetosphere need to consider the large lag times, up to 3 days, in the (Vsw, nsw) anticorrelation. Using CMI to remove the effects of Vsw, the response of Je to nsw is 30% smaller and has a lag time < 24 h, suggesting that the MeV electron loss mechanism due to nsw or solar wind dynamic pressure has to start operating in < 24 h. nsw transfers about 36% as much information as Vsw (the primary driver) to Je. Nonstationarity in the system dynamics is investigated using windowed TE. When the data are ordered according to transfer entropy value, it is possible to understand details of the triangle distribution that has been identified between Je(t + 2 days) versus Vsw(t).

Journal Title
Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics
DOI
10.1002/2016JA022711
First Department
Engineering
Citation Information
Simon Wing, Jay R. Johnson, Enrico Camporeale and Geoffrey D. Reeves. "Information Theoretical Approach to Discovering Solar Wind Drivers of the Outer Radiation Belt" Vol. 121 Iss. 10 (2016) p. 9378 - 9399
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/jay-johnson/30/