Dungey Cycle

Cyclic Behavior

The Dungey cycle occurs within three stages:

1. In the first stage, solar flux and the magnetopause connect, creating an opening in the magnetopause in which the solar wind can enter the magnetosphere. This opening is called the dayside reconnection and occurs on the side of the magnetosphere facing the solar wind source.
2. In the second stage, the flux travels in the direction of the solar wind across the magnetosphere.
3. In the third stage, at the magnetotail, reconnection closes the open flux, allowing for a new cycle to begin. This reconnection is called nightside reconnection.

Dungey's proposal originally put forth an explanation that the cycle is at steady state, and that the reconnection during stage one and three are equal. However, later work has found that the rate of reconnection is variable and affected by conditions at both the dayside reconnection site as well as the magnetotail.