Observations of long-lived solar wind streams during 1990-1993

Abstract. Interplanetary scintillation (IPS) can be used to identify changes in solar wind parameters over a wide range in heliographic latitude and elongation and constrain models of its large-scale structure, velocity and density. This paper reviews the scintillation density mapping method specifically, and presents over three years of data taken between March 1990 and September 1993 with the 3.6 hectare array in Cambridge. A novel form of synoptic plot that is particularly sensitive to corotating structures is introduced, and low-density streams are identified by their unequivocal signatures within it. Stable corotating structures are evident throughout - even during the active phase of the solar cycle - and specific periods are examined. Density measurements inferred from scintillation are compared with IMP-8 data for the same period and are shown to be in good agreement, giving further support to the scintillation/density relationship determined by Tappin (1986).