The dominant mode of standing Alfvén waves at the synchronous orbit

Low-frequency oscillations of the earth's magnetic field recorded by the University of California at Los Angeles magnetometer on board ATS 1 have been examined for the 6-month interval January–June 1968. Using evidence from Ogo 5 and ATS 5 as well as the data from ATS 1, we argue that the dominant mode at ATS 1 must be the fundamental rather than the second harmonic of a standing Alfvén wave. We also conclude that these transverse oscillations are more accurately associated with magnetically disturbed days than with quiet days. Both of these results represent changes of tentative conclusions based on our initial analysis. From 14 instances when oscillations of distinctly different periods occurred during the same time interval at ATS 1 we also conclude that higher harmonics can exist. The period ratio in seven of the 14 cases corresponds to the simultaneous occurrence of the second harmonic with the fundamental, and four other cases could be identified as the simultaneous occurrence of the fourth harmonic with the fundamental.