Abstract
An estimation of the value and orientation of the inclination of middle-scale structures in the solar wind plasma is obtained on the basis of time lags of simultaneous correlated measurements on three spacecraft: INTERBALL-1, IMP-8, and WIND. It is shown that middle-scale plasma structures, in the majority of cases, are not perpendicular to the Sun–Earth line, but inclined to it (presumably, in the ecliptic plane), on average, at an angle of approximately 63° (or 27° to the Y SE axis). However, this inclination is significantly less than the inclination of the Parker spiral for the interplanetary magnetic field (45° at the Earth's orbit).
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Dalin, P.A., Zastenker, G.N. & Richardson, J.D. Orientation of Middle-Scale Structures in the Solar Wind Plasma. Cosmic Research 40, 319–323 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019838226629
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019838226629