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There have been numerous reports showing that space weather affects power grids through a geomagnetically induced current (GIC). Generally, power grids consist of power lines connected to transformers, of which neutral points are directly grounded. The GIC flows into those transformers through the neutral points if geomagnetic variations cause a ground level potential. These currents can damage power grids, especially transformers. It has been tacitly assumed, however, that the effect of the GIC is minor in Japan because of the country's location at geomagnetically lower latitudes. To examine the GIC effect in Japan, we conducted approximately 2 years of GIC measurements in Hokkaido, Japan. It is found that GICs associated with substorms can be detected in Japan even at the solar minimum although intense GICs do occur mostly during geomagnetic storms. Temporal variations of GICs show high correlation with geomagnetic field variations, rather than time derivatives of the geomagnetic field.

Quiet time daily variations of the geomagnetic field near the magnetic equator due to the equatorial electrojet are simulated using the National Center for Atmospheric Research Thermosphere-Ionosphere Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIE-GCM) and compared to those observed by ground-based magnetometers. Simulations are run both with and without tidal forcing at the height of the model lower boundary (∼97 km). When the lower boundary forcing is off, the wind that generates an electromotive force in the model is primarily the vertically nonpropagating diurnal tide, which is excited in the thermosphere due to daytime solar ultraviolet heating. The lower boundary tidal forcing adds the effect of upward propagating tides, which are excited in the lower atmosphere and propagate vertically to the thermosphere. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the relative importance of these thermospherically generated tides and upward propagating tides in the generation of the equatorial electrojet. Fairly good agreement is obtained between model and observations when the model is forced by realistic lower boundary tides based on temperature and wind measurements from the Thermosphere-Ionosphere-Mesosphere Energetics and Dynamics (TIMED) satellite, as determined by Wu et al. (2012). The simulation results show that the effect of upward propagating tides increases the range of the geomagnetic daily variation in the magnetic-northward component at the magnetic equator approximately by 100%. It is also shown that the well-known semiannual change in the daily variation is mostly due to upward propagating tides, especially the migrating semidiurnal tide. These results indicate that upward propagating tides play a substantial role in producing the equatorial electrojet and its seasonal variability.

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The solar wind conditions of an extreme geomagnetic storm were examined using magnetic field observations obtained from geosynchronous satellites and the disturbance storm-time (Dst) index. During geosynchronous magnetopause crossings (GMCs), magnetic field variations at the magnetosheath, which is the modulated interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), were observed by geosynchronous satellite. The dawn to dusk solar wind electric field (VB S ) was estimated from the Dst index by using an empirical formula for Dst prediction; these data were then used to estimate the IMF and solar wind speed. This method was applied in the analysis of an extreme geomagnetic storm event that occurred on March 13-14, 1989, for which no direct solar wind information was available. A long duration of the GMC was observed after the second storm sudden commencement (SSC) of this event. The solar flare possibly associated with the second SSC of this storm event was identified as the March 12 M7.3/2B flare. The IMF B z was estimated to be about −50 nT with a solar wind speed of about 960 km/s during the 5 h in which the main phase of the storm rapidly developed, assuming an Alfvén Mach number (M A ) during this period of more than 2.