Analysis of Solar Wind Events Using Interplanetary Scintillation Remote Sensing 3D Reconstructions and Their Comparison at Mars

Interplanetary Scintillation (IPS) allows observation of the inner heliospheric response to corotating solar structures and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) in scintillation level and velocity. With colleagues at STELab, Nagoya University, Japan, we have developed near-real-time access of STELab IPS data for use in space-weather forecasting. We use a 3D reconstruction technique that produces perspective views from solar corotating plasma and outward-flowing solar wind as observed from Earth by iteratively fitting a kinematic solar wind model to IPS observations. This 3D modeling technique permits reconstruction of the density and velocity structure of CMEs and other interplanetary transients at a relatively coarse resolution: a solar rotational cadence and 10° latitudinal and longitudinal resolution for the corotational model and a one-day cadence and 20° latitudinal and longitudinal heliographic resolution for the time-dependent model. This technique is used to determine solar-wind pressure (“ram” pressure) at Mars. Results are compared with ram-pressure observations derived from Mars Global Surveyor magnetometer data (Crider et al. 2003, J. Geophys. Res. 108(A12), 1461) for the years 1999 through 2004. We identified 47 independent in situ pressure-pulse events above 3.5 nPa in the Mars Global Surveyor data in this time period where sufficient IPS data were available. We detail the large pressure pulse observed at Mars in association with a CME that erupted from the Sun on 27 May 2003, which was a halo CME as viewed from Earth. We also detail the response of a series of West-limb CME events and compare their response observed at Mars about 160° west of the Sun - Earth line by the Mars Global Surveyor with the response derived from the IPS 3D reconstructions.