For the last two decades the emphasis in magnetospheric physics has been to understand what role the interplanetary magnetic field plays in determining the energy transfer from the solar wind. This emphasis has been justified because of the magnitude of the effect. However, as a result, many of the factors governing geomagnetic activity have been overlooked., This grant will look at several of these important factors including 1) the effects of solar wind dynamic pressure variations upon the magnetosphere, 2) the effects of solar wind electric and magnetic fields upon the magnetosphere, and 3) predicting solar wind parameters from ground observations.
