Abstract
A solar coronal mass ejection (CME) is a large-scale eruption of plasma and magnetic fields from the Sun. It is believed to be the main source of strong interplanetary disturbances that may cause intense geomagnetic storms. However, not all front-side halo CMEs can encounter the Earth and produce geomagnetic storms. The longitude distribution of the Earth-encountered front-side halo CMEs (EFHCMEs) has not only an east–west (E–W) asymmetry (Wang et al., 2002), but also depends on the EFHCMEs' transit speeds from the Sun to 1 AU. The faster the EFHCMEs are, the more westward does their distribution shift, and as a whole, the distribution shifts to the west. Combining the observational results and a simple kinetic analysis, we believe that such E–W asymmetry appearing in the source longitude distribution is due to the deflection of CMEs' propagation in the interplanetary medium. Under the effect of the Parker spiral magnetic field, a fast CME will be blocked by the background solar wind ahead and deflected to the east, whereas a slow CME will be pushed by the following background solar wind and deflected to the west. The deflection angle may be estimated according to the CMEs' transit speed by using a kinetic model. It is shown that slow CMEs can be deflected more easily than fast ones. This is consistent with the observational results obtained by Zhang et al. (2003), that all four Earth-encountered limb CMEs originated from the east. On the other hand, since the most of the EFHCMEs are fast events, the range of the longitude distribution given by the theoretical model is E40°,W70°, which is well consistent with the observational results (E40°,W75°).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bartsch, R.: 1973, Solar Phys. 30, 93.
Burlage, L., Sittler, E., Mariani, F., and Schwenn, R.: 1981, J. Geophys. Res. 86, 6673.
Cane, H. V.: 1988, J. Geophys. Res. 93,1.
Cane, H. V. and Richardson, I. G.: 2003, J. Geophys. Res. 108, 1156.
Cane, H. V., Richardson, I. G., and St. Cyr, O. C.: 2000, Geophys. Res. Lett. 27, 3591.
Farrugia, C. J., Burlaga, L. F., Osherovich, V. A., Richardson, I. G., Freeman, M. P., Lepping, R. P., and Lazarus, A. J.: 1993, J. Geophys. Res. 98, 7621.
Gopalswamy, N., Lara, A., Lepping, R. P., Kaiser, M. L., Berdichevsky, D., and St. Cyr, O. C.: 2000, Geophys. Res. Lett. 27, 145.
Gosling, J. T.: 1990, in C.T. Russel, E. R. Priest and L. C. Lee (eds.), Coronal Mass Ejections and Magnetic Flux Ropes in Interplanetary Space. Physics of Magnetic Flux Ropes, AGU Geophys. Mon. 58, p. 343.
Gosling, J. T.: 1996, Annu. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 34, 35.
Gosling, J. T., McComas, D. J., Phillips, J. L., and Bame, S. J.: 1991, J. Geophys. Res. 96, 731.
Harrison, R. A.: 1986, Astron. Astrophys. 162, 283.
Heras, A. M., Sanahuja, B., Shea, M. A., and Smart, D. F.: 1990, Solar Phys. 126, 371.
Hirschberg, J., Bame, S. J., and Robbins, E. E.: 1972, Solar Phys. 23, 467.
Howard, R. A., Michels, D. J., Sheeley, Jr., N. R., and Koomen, M. J.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 263, L101.
Howard, R. A., Sheeley, Jr., N. R., Koomen, M. J., and Michels, D. J.: 1985, J. Geophys. Res. 90, 8173.
Hundhausen, A. J.: 1988, in V. Pizzo, T. E. Holzer, and D. G. Sime (eds.), Proceedings of the Sixth International Solar Wind Conference. Boulder, pp. 181–214.
Hundhausen, A. J.: 1993, J. Geophys. Res. 98, 13177.
Joshi, A.: 1995, Solar Phys. 157, 315.
Maunder, A. S. D.: 1907, Monthly Notices Royal Astron. Soc. 67, 451.
McAllister, A. H., Dryer, M., McIntosh, P., Singer, H., and Weiss, L.: 1996, J. Geophys. Res. 101
Meunier, N.: 2003, Astron. Astrophys. 405, 1107.
Neugebauer, M. and Goldstein, R.: 1997, in N. Crooker, J. A. Joselyn, and J. Feynman, J. (eds.), Coronal Mass Ejections. Washington D.C., pp. 245.
Parker, E. N.: 1963, Interplanetary dynamical processes.Wiley Interscience, New York.
Plunkett, S. P., Thompson, B. J., St. Cyr, O. C., and Howard, R. A.: 2001, J. Atmospheric Terrest. Phys. 63, 389.
Richardson, I. G. and Cane, H. V.: 1995, J. Geophys. Res. 100, 23397.
Sheeley, Jr., N. R., Howard, R. A., Koomen, M. J, Michels, D. J., Schwenn, R., Mulhauser, K. H., and Rosenbauer, H.: 1985, J. Geophys. Res. 90, 163.
St. Cyr, O.C., Howard, R.A., Sheeley,Jr. N.R., Plunkett, S.P., Michels, D.J., Paswaters, S.E., Koomen, M. J., Simnett, G. M., Thompson, B. J., Gurman, J. B., Schwenn, R., Webb, D. F., Hildner, E., and Lamy, P. L.: 2000, J. Geophys. Res. 105, 18169.
Wang, Y. M., Ye, P. Z., and Wang, S.: 2003, J. Geophys. Res. 108, 1370.
Wang, Y. M., Ye, P. Z., Wang, S., Zhou, G. P., and Wang, J. X.: 2002, J. Geophys. Res. 107, 1340.
Webb, D. F., Cliver, E. W., Crooker, N. U., St. Cyr, O. C., and Thompson, B. J.: 2000, J. Geophys. Res. 105, 7491.
Webb, D. F., Forbes, T. G., Aurass, H., Chen, J., Martens, P., Rompolt, B., Rusin, V., Martin, S. F., and Gaizauskas, V.: 1994, Solar Phys. 153, 73.
Zhang, J., Dere, K. P., Howard, R. A., and Bothmer, V.: 2003, Astrophys. J. 582, 520.
Zhou, G., Wang, J., and Cao, Z.: 2003, Astron. Astrophys. 397, 1057.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wang, Y., Shen, C., Wang, S. et al. Deflection of coronal mass ejection in the interplanetary medium. Solar Physics 222, 329–343 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SOLA.0000043576.21942.aa
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SOLA.0000043576.21942.aa