A Comparison of Radial Intensity Profiles of Termination Shock Particles and Anomalous Cosmic Rays in the Outer North-South Heliosheaths Using CRS data from V1 and V2

TL;DR

This study compares radial intensity profiles of termination shock particles and anomalous cosmic rays in the outer heliosheaths using Voyager data, revealing similar profiles in the outer regions and a maximum intensity near the middle of the heliosheath.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the intensity variations and spatial distribution of energetic particles in the outer heliosheath regions using Voyager CRS data.

Findings

Intensity profiles are more similar in outer North and South heliosheaths.

Maximum particle intensities occur midway between the termination shock and heliopause.

Intensity decreases near the heliopause, supporting theories of acceleration and loss effects.

Abstract

Using data from the Voyager 1 and 2 CRS telescopes available on the web through the end of 2014 we have studied the intensity variations of termination shock H nuclei and anomalous cosmic ray H and He nuclei as a function of radial distance. In contrast to the inner part of the heliosheath where the intensity vs. radius profiles in the North and South heliosheaths are much different, these intensity vs. radius profiles, as well as the intensities themselves, are more similar in the outer North and South heliosheaths as measured by V1 and V2 respectively. In the N heliosheath, taken to be 27.6 AU thick beyond the HTS crossing distance of 94 AU, the intensities of termination shock particles and anomalous cosmic rays reach a maximum at between 110-112 AU or at a location ~halfway between the termination shock and the heliopause. They then decrease more or less continuously to an intensity ~2/3 of the maximum for each component just before the final dropout at ~121 AU, just inside the heliopause. This intensity-time behavior favors theories in which the acceleration and loss effects lead to a maximum near the middle of the heliosheath.