Numerical study of the propagation characteristics of coronal mass ejections in a structured ambient solar wind

Abstract

Using a three-dimensional (3-D) magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) model, we analyze and study the propagation characteristics of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) launched at different positions in a realistic structured ambient solar wind. Here the ambient solar wind structure during the Carrington rotation 2095 is selected, which is the characteristics of activity rising phase. CMEs with a simple spherical plasmoid structure are initiated at different solar latitudes with respect to the heliospheric current sheet (HCS) and the Earth in the same ambient solar wind. Then, we numerically obtained the evolution process of the CMEs from the Sun to the interplanetary space. When the Earth and the CME launch position are located on the same side of the HCS, the arrival time of the shock at the Earth is faster than that when the Earth and the CME launch position are located on the opposite side of the HCS. The disturbance amplitudes for the same side event are also larger than those for the opposite side event. This may be due to the fact that the HCS between the CME and the Earth for the opposite side event hinders its propagation and weaken it. The CMEs tend to deflect toward the HCS in the latitudinal direction near the corona and then propagate almost parallel to the HCS in the interplanetary space. This deflecting tendency may be caused by the dynamic action of near-Sun magnetic pressure gradient force on the ejected coronal plasma.