Ulysses SWICS Selected Charge States and Ratios of Solar Wind Heavy Ions 3-Hour Data

This ASCII data set consists of three hour averages of selected charge states and abundance ratios for solar wind heavy ions. The average charge state of Fe is given for states from Fe6+ to Fe16+; normal values vary from 9 to 12 in slow and fast solar wind with higher values in coronal mass ejection (CME) events. For carbon and oxygen the C6+/C5+ and O7+/O6+ ratios are given. The carbon on ratio is about ten times that for oxygen. Low ratios of these are indicative of fast solar wind streams. The Fe/O ratio is also provided as a proxy for the strength of the first ionization potential (FIP) fractionation when divided by the standard solar abundance value for Fe/O of about 0.05. Other data parameters include the alpha particle speed and the number of 13-min instrument cycles (normally 12 to 14) used for each 3-hour value. Each ASCII data file contains up to one year of data. The experiment and data processing are further described in G. Gloeckler, et al., The Solar Wind Ion Composition Spectrometer, Astron. Astrophys., 92(2), 267-289, 1992.