Anomalous flows in the magnetosheath and their relation to the magnetopause motion

The magnetopause (MP) is a critical boundary dividing the space controlled by the Earth's magnetic field from the solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). Its position is mainly influenced by the solar wind dynamic pressure and the north-south IMF component (Bz), which are included in various empirical MP models. However, different transient phenomena, such as hot flow anomalies (HFAs) and magnetosheath jets/plasmoids, generated at the bow shock, can significantly impact the MP, redirecting the plasma flow sunward and triggering a rapid displacement of the local MP in this direction.

We present our preliminary results of case and statistical studies of such transient events, aiming to estimate the contribution of their effect on velocity of MP motion. We also discuss the influence of these structures on the local MP shape and orientation. The statistics reveals favorable upstream solar wind conditions and accompanying local magnetosheath parameters.