Geology topics

Hisashi Hayakawa

Publications and source records attributed to Hisashi Hayakawa.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2019

Intensity and impact of the New York Railroad superstorm of May 1921

Analysis is made of low‐latitude ground‐based magnetometer data recording the magnetic superstorm of May 1921. By inference, the storm was driven by a series of interplanetary coronal mass ejections, one of which produced a maximum pressure on the magnetopause of ~64.5 nPa, sufficient to compress the subsolar magnetopause radius to ~5.3 Earth radii. Over the course of the storm, low‐latitude geomagnetic disturbance exhibited extreme local time (longitude) asymmetry that can be attributed to substorm disturbance extending to low latitudes. The storm attained an estimated maximum − Dst on 15 May of 907 ± 132 nT, an intensity comparable to that of the Carrington event of 1859. The May 1921 storm brought spectacular aurorae to the nighttime sky. It also interfered with and damaged telephone and telegraph systems associated with railroad systems in New York City and State. These later effects were due to a combination of three factors: the localized details of geomagnetic vector disturbance, the geographic expression of the Earth's surface impedance tensor, and the configurations and physical parameters of the electrical networks of the day.

New York↗

USGS2019

On the intensity of the magnetic superstorm of September 1909

Analysis is made of solar observations and ground‐based magnetometer data recording space weather before and during the magnetic superstorm of 25 September 1909. From these data, it is inferred that the storm was initiated by an interplanetary coronal‐mass ejection having a mean Sun‐to‐Earth velocity of ~1,679 km/s. The commencement pressure on the magnetopause was ~32.4 nPa, sufficient to compress the subsolar magnetopause radius to ~5.9 Earth radii. Early on in the evolution of the storm, low‐latitude geomagnetic disturbance exhibited extreme longitudinal asymmetry, something that can be attributed to substorm activity extending to low latitudes. For this storm, Dst attained a minimum of −595 nT, comparable to that of the great magnetic storm of March 1989 (−589 nT; the most intense storm in terms of Dst of the space age). These results inform projects focused on understanding and mitigating the deleterious effects of extreme space‐weather events.

Space Weather↗

USGS2018

The extreme space weather event in September 1909

We evaluate worldwide low-latitude auroral activity associated with the great magnetic storm of September 1909 for which a minimum Dst value of −595 nT has recently been determined. From auroral observations, we calculate that the equatorward boundary of the auroral oval in the 1909 event was in the range from 31°–35° invariant latitude (assuming auroral height of 400 km) to 37°–38° (800 km). These locations compare with satellite-based observations of precipitating auroral electrons down to 40° magnetic latitude for the March 1989 storm with its comparable minimum Dst value of −589 nT. According to Japanese auroral records, bluish colour started to appear first, followed by reddish colour. The colour change can be attributed to the transition from sunlit aurora to the usual low-latitude reddish aurora. Telegraph communications were disrupted at mid/low latitudes, coincidently with the storm main phase and the early recovery phase. The telegraphic disturbances were caused by geomagnetically induced currents associated with the storm-time ring current and substorm current wedge. From the calculated CME energy ─ based on the 24.75 hr separation between the flare-associated magnetic crochet and the geomagnetic storm sudden commencement and interplanetary conditions inferred from geomagnetic data ─ and consideration of the ∼−40 nT crochet amplitude, we estimated that the soft X-ray class of the 24 September 1909 flare was ≥X10. As is the case for other extreme storms, strong/sharp excursions in the horizontal component of the magnetic field observed at low-latitude magnetic stations were coincident with the observation of low-latitude aurora.

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society↗