Time Variations of Galactic Comic Ray Intensities Near Earth: 1997 to 1999

The time dependences of the intensities of low-energy galactic cosmic ray (GCR) nuclei have been investigated using instrumentation carried aboard the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE). The intensities of these low energy particles near Earth began to decline from solar minimum levels in late-1997 /early-1998, shortly after the launch of ACE, and have been continuously monitored by the Cosmic Ray Isotope Spectrometer (CRIS) instrument since that time. We find that the variations are well correlated with variations of higher energy cosmic rays, as indicated by neutron monitor observations. The relative magnitude of the GCR variations is significantly less than previously reported for anomalous cosmic rays. We also compare the fluctuations observed for different energies and different nuclides.