Solar Orbiter’s Far-side Magnetogram Impacts on Coronal Holes and Solar Wind Predictions
8 affiliations
- 1NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
- 2The Catholic University of America
- 3Air Force Research Laboratory
- 4George Mason University
- 5University of Maryland
- 6Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía—IAA-CSIC
- 7Spanish Space Solar Physics Consortium (S3PC)
- 8Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research
Abstract
We investigate the impact of Solar Orbiter's far-side magnetic field observations on coronal holes and solar wind predictions at multiple heliospheric locations during the period of 2024 March 30–May 21. Far-side data, obtained from the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager on board Solar Orbiter, were incorporated into the Air Force Data Assimilative Photospheric Flux Transport Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager maps and used as input to the Wang–Sheeley–Arge model (v6.2). Solar wind predictions produced with and without the inclusion of far-side magnetogram information were compared against in situ measurements from Solar Orbiter, ACE, STEREO-A, and Parker Solar Probe. Time intervals where the two simulations differ substantially were identified and such differences were related to changes in coronal hole morphology and magnetic connectivity driven by the assimilation of far-side data. Results highlighted here demonstrate that far-side observations can significantly improve solar wind predictions not only near Solar Orbiter but also at locations up to 165° away in heliographic longitude, as demonstrated at ACE's location. We further show that far-side data can lead to notable changes in the modelled polarity of the coronal magnetic field and the shape of the heliospheric current sheet through magnetic flux redistribution. These findings underscore the importance of incorporating far-side observations into global models and highlight their potential to improve both background solar wind and coronal mass ejection modeling for enhanced space weather forecasting throughout the inner heliosphere.
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BibTeX
@article{samara2026solar,
title = {{Solar Orbiter’s Far-side Magnetogram Impacts on Coronal Holes and Solar Wind Predictions}},
author = {Evangelia Samara and Charles N. Arge and Samuel J. Schonfeld and Alison Farrish and Carl J. Henney and Daniel E. Da Silva and Hanna Strecker and Artem Ulyanov},
journal = {The Astrophysical Journal},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3847/1538-4357/ae9838},
url = {https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/ae9838},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Solar Orbiter’s Far-side Magnetogram Impacts on Coronal Holes and Solar Wind Predictions
AU - Evangelia Samara
AU - Charles N. Arge
AU - Samuel J. Schonfeld
AU - Alison Farrish
AU - Carl J. Henney
AU - Daniel E. Da Silva
AU - Hanna Strecker
AU - Artem Ulyanov
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - The Astrophysical Journal
DO - 10.3847/1538-4357/ae9838
UR - https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/ae9838
AB - We investigate the impact of Solar Orbiter's far-side magnetic field observations on coronal holes and solar wind predictions at multiple heliospheric locations during the period of 2024 March 30–May 21. Far-side data, obtained from the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager on board Solar Orbiter, were incorporated into the Air Force Data Assimilative Photospheric Flux Transport Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager maps and used as input to the Wang–Sheeley–Arge model (v6.2). Solar wind predictions produced with and without the inclusion of far-side magnetogram information were compared against in situ measurements from Solar Orbiter, ACE, STEREO-A, and Parker Solar Probe. Time intervals where the two simulations differ substantially were identified and such differences were related to changes in coronal hole morphology and magnetic connectivity driven by the assimilation of far-side data. Results highlighted here demonstrate that far-side observations can significantly improve solar wind predictions not only near Solar Orbiter but also at locations up to 165° away in heliographic longitude, as demonstrated at ACE's location. We further show that far-side data can lead to notable changes in the modelled polarity of the coronal magnetic field and the shape of the heliospheric current sheet through magnetic flux redistribution. These findings underscore the importance of incorporating far-side observations into global models and highlight their potential to improve both background solar wind and coronal mass ejection modeling for enhanced space weather forecasting throughout the inner heliosphere.
SN - 1538-4357
SN - 0004-637X
ER -