An analysis of geomagnetic field variations (3 min-2 h) at a low-latitude observatory (L=1.6)

Abstract. An analysis of the geomagnetic field variations between 3 min and 2 h at L'Aquila (L=1.6) shows that the power level in the low-frequency range (i.e. for periods longer than approximately 10 min) at solar maximum (1989/90) is much higher than at solar minimum (1985/86). Conversely, at solar minimum, it emerges that there is a greater relative importance of fluctuations with periods smaller than 10 min which might be related to the greater percentage of solar wind speeds greater than approximately 540 km s^–1. Diurnal, seasonal and solar cycle variations of both the high- and the low-frequency power are also discussed. We found that several aspects of these variations might be correlated with ionospheric features such as the ionisation of the F2 layer and the location and the intensity of the S current system.