Aspects of the Influence of the Global Heliospheric Current Sheet on GCR Propagation

Abstract

The influence of the global heliospheric current sheet on the heliospheric characteristics important for GCR propagation is considered, particularly the strong dependence of the solar wind velocity on the distance from the current sheet. A simple model of the solar wind velocity is proposed that, after estimating the parameters from observations, can be used for theoretical studies of GCR modulation. The choice of the GCR propagation model to be used for periods of low and medium sunspot activity is discussed.