What are sub-mesoscale currents?5 answersSubmesoscale currents are oceanic motions on scales of 100 m–10 km, characterized by fronts, filaments, and vortices that play a crucial role in redistributing water properties and energy in the upper ocean. These currents are associated with various instabilities like mixed-layer baroclinic, gravitational, symmetric, and inertial instabilities, which enhance vertical exchange and drive efficient restratification of the upper ocean. Submesoscales receive kinetic energy from potential energy release and exhibit surface-intensified features that penetrate beneath the mixed layer, with their generation attributed to baroclinic instability and mesoscale strain-induced frontogenesis. In regions like the Mississippi River plume system, submesoscale currents are influenced by wind-induced Ekman transport and exhibit significant variability based on wind direction, with instabilities playing a key role in the arrest and fragmentation of fronts and filaments.
What are the different types of currents that occur during substorms?5 answersDuring substorms, different types of currents occur in the coupled magnetosphere-ionosphere system. These currents include:
1. Equivalent currents, which consist of a poleward equivalent current channel, a westward electrojet associated with an auroral arc, and a vortex. The vortex can either indent the electrojet and arc equatorward or bulge the electrojet poleward while winding the arc into an auroral spiral.2. Large-scale upward and downward currents that contribute to the substorm current wedge (SCW). There are two types of SCW: a single large-scale wedge and a composite of large-scale wedge and wedgelets associated with streamers. The composite current type is more frequent.3. Field-aligned currents (FACs), also known as Birkeland currents, which transfer energy and momentum from the magnetosphere and solar wind to the ionosphere. FACs increase following substorm onset and vary with season but have a consistent impact on the coupled system.
How does the substorm current wedge affect field-aligned currents?5 answersThe substorm current wedge (SCW) affects field-aligned currents (FACs) by being composed of localized wedgelets that combine to form large-scale region-1-sense SCW FACs. These wedgelets are field-aligned currents carried by dipolarizing flux bundles (DFBs), which are elemental flux transport units in the magnetotail. The DFBs are localized and have asymmetries, with more FACs toward the Earth in the dawn sector and more FACs away from the Earth in the dusk sector. When these localized wedgelets combine, their net effect is the same as that of the large-scale SCW FACs, indicating that they comprise the SCW. Therefore, the SCW plays a crucial role in the generation and structure of FACs during substorms.
What are the relationships between solar plasma parameters and geomagnetic activity during major storms?5 answersSolar plasma parameters, such as solar wind dynamic pressure, proton density, and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) Bz, have been found to have relationships with geomagnetic activity during major storms. The interdependence between these parameters and geomagnetic indices, such as AE and SYM-H, has been studied using nonlinear analytical tools like Cross Recurrence Plot (CRP) and Recurrence Rate (RR). During storms, there is a strong deterministic structure and very strong interdependence between solar wind dynamic pressure and proton density. Additionally, the intensity of major geomagnetic storms depends on the time integrals of southward IMF Bz, solar wind electric field, and injection function. The largest geomagnetically induced currents (GIC) occur at the time of the largest -(V×Bz) and are determined by the time of the largest -Bz and the magnitude of solar wind velocity and -Bz. These findings highlight the importance of solar plasma parameters in understanding and predicting geomagnetic activity during major storms.
How the IMF orientation affect the storm time magnetospheric flux?5 answersThe orientation of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) affects the storm-time magnetospheric flux. During geomagnetic storms, the IMF plays a crucial role in the evolution of the magnetospheric current systems and the distribution of ionospheric currents. The IMF southward component is particularly important in driving storm-time phenomena. It has been observed that storms with a southward IMF component lead to an increase in the flux of the ring current, as well as the growth of the cross-tail current and magnetopause currents. The IMF azimuthal component also influences the longitudinal position of ionospheric structures, with the westward electrojet intensity maximum shifting to morning hours with increasing positive IMF By values. The orientation of the IMF is directly related to the growth rate of the flux directed mainly to the nightside of the magnetosphere, which affects the Dst variation and the equatorward shift of the auroral oval. The bursty and structured electric fields associated with equatorward extending auroral streamers during southward IMF driving contribute to the expansion of the auroral oval and the injection of ions and electrons into the ring current. The asymmetry in the D component of the geomagnetic field also suggests the presence of net downward and upward field-aligned currents in different sectors of the magnetosphere during southward IMF conditions.
What causes convection currents in the Earth's mantle?3 answersConvection currents in the Earth's mantle are caused by the heat released from the planetary interior as it cools over billions of years. This heat powers convective flow in the mantle, which is the most voluminous and stiffest part of the planet. Mantle flow drives geological activity such as volcanism, orogenesis, and rifting, and also deforms the planetary surface. The solid-state convection in the Earth's mantle is influenced by plate tectonics and the presence of superplumes, which are broad hot regions in the deep lower mantle. The presence of a magma ocean at the upper or lower boundary of the solid mantle can also affect convection, with heat transfer being greatly increased. Overall, convection currents in the Earth's mantle are driven by the cooling of the planetary interior and are influenced by various factors such as plate tectonics, superplumes, and the presence of a magma ocean.