On the role of the chirality of solar magnetic fields in geomagnetic events.
Alexei A. Pevtsov
Abstract
Magnetic fields on the Sun exhibit two specific hemispheric dependencies:
the Hale- Nicholson polarity law and the hemispheric helicity rule. As
a result, the meridional component of the field in both hemispheres will
be oriented preferentially southward (northward) during even (odd) numbered
solar cycles (Bothmer and Rust 1997). Similar cyclic behavior should
also be seen in the orientation of the magnetic field in coronal mass ejections
and hence, be present in geomagnetic indexes. We use the Ap-index and the
sunspot number for solar cycles 17-22 to show that the expecterd trend
is indeed present in these data.
Organization: Montana State University
Telephone: 406-994-7839
Fax: 406-994-4452
e-mail: pevtsov@physics.montana.edu
Address: Department of Physics
Montana State University
Bozeman, MT 59717-3840