1. How Common is Energetic 3He in the Inner Heliosphere?
- Author
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Wiedenbeck, M.E., Mason, G.M., Christian, E.R., Cohen, C.M.S., Cummings, A.C., Dwyer, J.R., Gold, R.E., Krimigis, S.M., Leske, R.A., Mazur, J.E., Mewaldt, R.A., Slocum, P.L., Stone, E.C., and von Rosenvinge, T.T.
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HELIUM ions , *HELIOSPHERE , *INTERPLANETARY medium - Abstract
Using data from the SIS and ULEIS instruments on the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) we have identified periods during which energetic 3He is present in near-Earth interplanetary space between November 1997 and May 2002. The data, which cover the energy intervals 0.2–1 MeV/nuc (ULEIS) and 4.5–16.3 MeV/nuc (SIS), show that 3He is present a significant fraction of the time, as would be required if these suprathermal particles were the major source of the 3He being accelerated by shocks in the interplanetary medium. Specifically, we find that energetic 3He is present at least ∼ 60% of the time, and perhaps significantly more often. © 2003 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2003
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