Objetivo Studies of the interaction between the solar wind and the magnetosphere are a fundamental concern in space physics, and form the central theme of this project. The steady-state features of solar wind-magnetosphere coupling are now rather well understood. But in reality the solar wind parameters vary over a wide range, and this in turn causes a non-steady character of interaction which is still understood rather poor. To improve our knowledge of this important problem, the main goal of this project is to develop a time-dependent MHD description of the solar wind interaction with the dayside magnetosphere. To make this large problem manageable, it will be split on the basis of a set of key physical processes and phenomena which have been identified: the structure of the magneto-sheath, which includes the pile-up of magnetic field in front of the magnetopause, reconnection, which is the dominant coupling process at the magnetopause, the inward motion or "erosion" of the magnetopause, the generation of Region 1 and 2 field-aligned currents, other ionospheric current systems. Each of these topics will be treated and modelled separately, but the necessary feedback mechanisms to join these pieces together will be included, based on a time-dependent analysis.To simplify the theoretical analysis, the solar wind dynamic pressure is assumed to be constant. Under this condition the key parameter controlling the solar wind-magnetosphere coupling is the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). From a mathematical point of view the constant pressure condition guarantees the applicability of the MHD boundary-layer approach, which in turn simplifies the 3D time-dependent problem of solar wind-magnetosphere coupling to that of solving a set of 2D string-type equations for the magnetic flux tubes. In the final analysis we expect to obtain a self-consistent description of the unsteady structure of the magneto-sheath, burst reconnection at the magnetopause, generation of field-aligned currents, erosion of the magnetopause, evolution of the ionospheric current systems, as well as the mass, energy and momentum transfer from the solar wind to the magnetosphere in response to a time-varying IMF. The models developed as part of this project should lead to a better and more efficient exploitation of the large amount of data available, and comparisons will help to guide directions for future research.The participants in this proposal are from Austria, Russia, Germany and the UK and have enjoyed many years working together on the theory and data analysis. The research skills, strengths and interests of the participants are complementary, and are all necessary to carry out the piecewise approach outlined in this proposal. Programa(s) IC-INTAS - International Association for the promotion of cooperation with scientists from the independent states of the former Soviet Union (INTAS), 1993- Tema(s) 1B - Condensed Matter, Optics and Plasma Physics ESA - ESA Convocatoria de propuestas Data not available Régimen de financiación Data not available Coordinador Space Research Institute Aportación de la UE Sin datos Dirección Schmiedlstrasse 6 8042 Graz Austria Ver en el mapa Coste total Sin datos Participantes (4) Ordenar alfabéticamente Ordenar por aportación de la UE Ampliar todo Contraer todo Max-Planck-Gesellschaft Alemania Aportación de la UE Sin datos Dirección Griessenbach Street 85740 Garching bei München Ver en el mapa Coste total Sin datos Siberian branch of Russian Academy of Sciences Rusia Aportación de la UE Sin datos Dirección Akademgorodok 660036 Krasnoyarsk Ver en el mapa Coste total Sin datos St.Petersburg State University Rusia Aportación de la UE Sin datos Dirección Ulyanovskaya 198904 St. Petersburg Ver en el mapa Coste total Sin datos University of Sussex Reino Unido Aportación de la UE Sin datos Dirección BN1 9QH Brighton Ver en el mapa Coste total Sin datos
