The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand
Abstract Variability of the geomagnetic field induces anomalous Geomagnetically Induced Currents (GICs) in grounded conducting infrastructure. GICs represent a serious space weather hazard but are not often measured directly and the rate of change of the magnetic field is often used as a proxy. We a...
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| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2022-08-01
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| Series: | Space Weather |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1029/2021SW002983 |
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| author | A. W. Smith C. J. Rodger D. H. Mac Manus C. Forsyth I. J. Rae M. P. Freeman M. A. Clilverd T. Petersen M. Dalzell |
| author_facet | A. W. Smith C. J. Rodger D. H. Mac Manus C. Forsyth I. J. Rae M. P. Freeman M. A. Clilverd T. Petersen M. Dalzell |
| author_sort | A. W. Smith |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Variability of the geomagnetic field induces anomalous Geomagnetically Induced Currents (GICs) in grounded conducting infrastructure. GICs represent a serious space weather hazard but are not often measured directly and the rate of change of the magnetic field is often used as a proxy. We assess the correlation between the rate of change of the magnetic field and GICs during Sudden Commencements (SCs) at a location in New Zealand. We observe excellent correlations (r2 ∼0.9) between the maximum 1‐min rate of change of the field and maximum GIC. Nonetheless, though SCs represent a relatively simple geomagnetic signature, we find that the correspondence systematically depends on several factors. If the SC occurs when New Zealand is on the dayside of the Earth, then the magnetic changes are linked to 30% greater GICs than if New Zealand is on the nightside. We investigate the finding that the orientation of the strongest magnetic deflection is important: changes predominantly in the east‐west direction drive 36% stronger GICs. Dayside SCs are also associated with faster maximum rates of change of the field at a resolution of 1 s. Therefore, while the maximum rates of change of the magnetic field and GICs are well correlated, the orientation and sub‐1‐min resolution details of the field change are important to consider when estimating the associated currents. Finally, if the SC is later followed by a geomagnetic storm, then a given rate of change of the magnetic field is associated with 22% larger GICs, compared to if the SC is isolated. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a029a1d11caa4da88dc76dfae726c62d |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1542-7390 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2022-08-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Space Weather |
| spelling | doaj-art-a029a1d11caa4da88dc76dfae726c62d2025-01-14T16:27:07ZengWileySpace Weather1542-73902022-08-01208n/an/a10.1029/2021SW002983The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New ZealandA. W. Smith0C. J. Rodger1D. H. Mac Manus2C. Forsyth3I. J. Rae4M. P. Freeman5M. A. Clilverd6T. Petersen7M. Dalzell8Mullard Space Science Laboratory UCL Dorking UKDepartment of Physics University of Otago Dunedin New ZealandDepartment of Physics University of Otago Dunedin New ZealandMullard Space Science Laboratory UCL Dorking UKDepartment of Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering Northumbria University Newcastle upon Tyne UKBritish Antarctic Survey Cambridge UKBritish Antarctic Survey Cambridge UKGNS Science Wellington New ZealandTranspower New Zealand Limited Wellington New ZealandAbstract Variability of the geomagnetic field induces anomalous Geomagnetically Induced Currents (GICs) in grounded conducting infrastructure. GICs represent a serious space weather hazard but are not often measured directly and the rate of change of the magnetic field is often used as a proxy. We assess the correlation between the rate of change of the magnetic field and GICs during Sudden Commencements (SCs) at a location in New Zealand. We observe excellent correlations (r2 ∼0.9) between the maximum 1‐min rate of change of the field and maximum GIC. Nonetheless, though SCs represent a relatively simple geomagnetic signature, we find that the correspondence systematically depends on several factors. If the SC occurs when New Zealand is on the dayside of the Earth, then the magnetic changes are linked to 30% greater GICs than if New Zealand is on the nightside. We investigate the finding that the orientation of the strongest magnetic deflection is important: changes predominantly in the east‐west direction drive 36% stronger GICs. Dayside SCs are also associated with faster maximum rates of change of the field at a resolution of 1 s. Therefore, while the maximum rates of change of the magnetic field and GICs are well correlated, the orientation and sub‐1‐min resolution details of the field change are important to consider when estimating the associated currents. Finally, if the SC is later followed by a geomagnetic storm, then a given rate of change of the magnetic field is associated with 22% larger GICs, compared to if the SC is isolated.https://doi.org/10.1029/2021SW002983GICsSudden CommencementscouplingGeomagnetically Induced Currentspower networks |
| spellingShingle | A. W. Smith C. J. Rodger D. H. Mac Manus C. Forsyth I. J. Rae M. P. Freeman M. A. Clilverd T. Petersen M. Dalzell The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand Space Weather GICs Sudden Commencements coupling Geomagnetically Induced Currents power networks |
| title | The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand |
| title_full | The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand |
| title_fullStr | The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand |
| title_short | The Correspondence Between Sudden Commencements and Geomagnetically Induced Currents: Insights From New Zealand |
| title_sort | correspondence between sudden commencements and geomagnetically induced currents insights from new zealand |
| topic | GICs Sudden Commencements coupling Geomagnetically Induced Currents power networks |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1029/2021SW002983 |
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