The neutral wind pattern over the summer polar cap can be driven by plasma convection to resemble the convection pattern. For a north-south component of the interplanetary magnetic field Bz directed southward, the wind speeds in the conducting E-region can become ~25% of the electric field drift speeds. If convection ceases, this neutral wind distribution can drive a significant polar cap current system for ~6 hours. The currents are reversed from those driven by the electric fields for southward Bz, and the Hall and field-aligned components of the current system resemble those observed during periods of northward Bz. The current magnitudes are similar to those observed during periods of small, northward Bz; however observations indicate that electric fields often contribute to the currents as much as, or more than, the neutral winds. |