The Response of Auroral-Oval Waves to CIR-Driven Recurrent Storms: FY-3E/ACMag Observations

Alfven-branch waves provide an efficient means for transporting energy into the auroral oval. Here, we report observations of these waves obtained by the Fengyun-3E (FY-3E)/ACMag instruments, which are designed to detect three-dimensional AC magnetic fields in the 0.05-25 Hz band. The observations suggest that broadband waves are a permanent feature of the auroral oval, although their amplitude and locations vary with the global state of the magnetosphere. We primarily focus on the data obtained from 10 July 2021 to 26 August 2021, during which a series of recurrent storms driven by solar wind corotating interaction regions (CIRs) occurred. Analysis of the observations shows that the auroral-oval waves grow in amplitude (1-3 orders of magnitude) and shift to lower latitude (similar to 10 degrees C) immediately following the decrease in the SYM-H index in each storm. Further investigation reveals the response of the auroral-oval waves has a time scale equal to or less than FY-3E's effective revisiting time, which is about 45 min. The observations presented in this paper confirm that the FY-3E/ACMag instruments provide a high-resolution monitor of the auroral-oval waves and could further our understanding of auroral physics.

Automated summary

Broadband waves in the auroral oval are a permanent feature, with amplitude and location variations related to the magnetosphere's global state. Observations from 10 July to 26 August 2021 show that the waves in the auroral oval increase in amplitude (1-3 orders of magnitude) and shift to lower latitudes (around 10 degrees) immediately following the end of each storm. The response time of the auroral-oval waves is found to be equal to or less than the effective revisiting time of FY-3E, which is approximately 45 minutes.