Deformation of Ionospheric Potential Pattern by Ionospheric Hall Polarization

• Published in: Journal of geophysical research. Space physics 2019-09, Vol.124 (9), p.7553-7580
• Main Authors: Nakamizo, Aoi, Yoshikawa, Akimasa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Auroral zones; Conductance; conductance nonuniformity; Convection; Deformation mechanisms; Ionosphere; Ionospheric convection; ionospheric Hall polarization; ionospheric Pedersen polarization; ionospheric potential; Magnetospheres; magnetosphere‐ionosphere coupling; Polarity; Polarization; primary and secondary system; Resistance; Tensors
• ISSN: 2169-9380; 2169-9402
• DOI: 10.1029/2018JA026013

The present study shows that the ionospheric Hall polarization can deform the high‐latitude ionospheric convection field, which is widely considered to be a manifestation of the convection field in the magnetosphere. We perform the Hall polarization field separation with a potential solver by changing the conductance distribution step by step from a uniform one to a more realistic one. We adopt dawn‐dusk and north‐south symmetric distributions of conductance and region 1 (R1) field‐aligned current (FAC). The pair of the primary field of the R1 system and each gradient of off‐diagonal component of conductance tensor (Hall conductance) generates the Hall polarization field and consequently causes potential deformations as follows. (a) The equatorward gradient causes clockwise rotation. (b) The gradient across the terminator, together with the effect of the equatorward gradient, causes the dawn‐dusk asymmetry. (c) The high conductance band in the auroral region causes kink‐type deformations. In particular, a nested structure at the equatorward edge of the band in the midnight sector well resembles the Harang Reversal. Result (a) can explain the clockwise bias inexplicable by the IMF‐By effect alone, the combination of (a) and (b) can explain the clearness and unclearness in the round or crescent shapes of the dawn‐dusk cells depending on the IMF‐By polarity, and (c) suggests that the ionosphere may not need the upward‐FAC for the formation of the Harang Reversal. We suggest that the final structure of the ionospheric potential is established by the combined effects of the magnetospheric requirements (external causes) and ionospheric polarization (internal effect). Key Points Ionospheric Hall polarization field generated by the off‐diagonal conductance (Hall conductance) nonuniformity causes potential deformation Latitudinal and terminator gradient of off‐diagonal conductance causes clockwise rotation and dawn‐dusk asymmetry of the two‐cell potential A structure resembling the Harang Reversal is generated by the Hall polarization field without an upward field‐aligned current