On the influence of the magnetization of a model solar wind on a laboratory magnetosphere

The interaction of a magnetized plasma beam with a stationary dipole field, analogous to the interaction of the solar wind with the Earth's magnetosphere, is explored in a laboratory experiment. Experimental parameters are chosen to scale qualitatively similar to the parameters in the Earth's magnetosphere. We find that the magnetization of the laboratory “solar wind,” generated by injecting a plasma across a preexisting magnetic field, requires a certain minimum magnetic field strength. Differences between the resulting magnetospheres for northward and southward “solar wind” or “interplanetary” magnetic fields (IMF) are demonstrated by global pictures and by magnetic field measurements above the north polar region. These measurements show patterns of the variation of the transverse field component which are similar to those found by satellite measurements above the Earth. This indicates the presence of similar field-aligned current systems. We demonstrate particularly the presence (for northward IMF) and absence (for southward IMF) of the pattern attributed to the “NBZ” (northward Bz) current system.