Forbush decreases caused by paired interacting solar wind disturbances

Abstract

ABSTRACT The paper discusses changes in various characteristics of the solar wind, interplanetary magnetic field, geomagnetic activity, and cosmic rays during the registration of paired interacting solar wind disturbances on the Earth using the data base of Forbush effects and interplanetary disturbances – FEID. The cases of pair interaction are considered for 1995–2020: (i) successive coronal mass ejections; (ii) coronal mass ejections and high-speed streams from coronal holes; (iii) successive high-speed streams from coronal holes. It is shown that for the first events from a pair, the times for reaching the maximum values of the interplanetary magnetic field and solar wind velocity are significantly reduced, and the amplitudes of the recorded Forbush decreases decline. It is also found that the presence of interaction enriches the second event at the expense of the resources of the first, increasing geomagnetic efficiency and the degree of cosmic ray modulation for the second event in comparison with isolated events, which is especially pronounced for a pair of interacting coronal mass ejections. The existence of the described effects can be explained by the observed increase in the interplanetary magnetic field magnitude in the second events due to the presence of interaction.