Coronal mass ejections and their sheath regions in interplanetary space

Interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) are large-scale heliospheric transients that originate from the Sun. When an ICME is sufficiently faster than the preceding solar wind, a shock wave develops ahead of the ICME. The turbulent region between the shock and the ICME is called the sheath regi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Living reviews in solar physics 2017, Vol.14 (1), p.5-5, Article 5
Main Authors: Kilpua, Emilia, Koskinen, Hannu E. J., Pulkkinen, Tuija I.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Astronomy
Astrophysics and Astroparticles
Astrophysics and Cosmology
Coronal mass ejections
Interplanetary shocks
Magnetic clouds
Physics
Physics and Astronomy
Plasma Physics
Review
Review Article
Solar wind
Space Exploration and Astronautics
Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics
Space weather
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Summary:Interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) are large-scale heliospheric transients that originate from the Sun. When an ICME is sufficiently faster than the preceding solar wind, a shock wave develops ahead of the ICME. The turbulent region between the shock and the ICME is called the sheath region. ICMEs and their sheaths and shocks are all interesting structures from the fundamental plasma physics viewpoint. They are also key drivers of space weather disturbances in the heliosphere and planetary environments. ICME-driven shock waves can accelerate charged particles to high energies. Sheaths and ICMEs drive practically all intense geospace storms at the Earth, and they can also affect dramatically the planetary radiation environments and atmospheres. This review focuses on the current understanding of observational signatures and properties of ICMEs and the associated sheath regions based on five decades of studies. In addition, we discuss modelling of ICMEs and many fundamental outstanding questions on their origin, evolution and effects, largely due to the limitations of single spacecraft observations of these macro-scale structures. We also present current understanding of space weather consequences of these large-scale solar wind structures, including effects at the other Solar System planets and exoplanets. We specially emphasize the different origin, properties and consequences of the sheaths and ICMEs.
ISSN:2367-3648
1614-4961
1614-4961
DOI:10.1007/s41116-017-0009-6