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Description
Any stars permanently loose small amounts of mass during their lifetimes. This mass is propelled outward at velocities in the range 100 to 3000 km/s at ionization temperatures forming a continuous flow called stellar wind. As cosmic rays permanently and ubiquitously pervade the Galaxy, while impacting on stellar winds, loose energy.
This is empirically known since 70 years. Due to the prevailing positive electric charge of cosmic rays, the ambient around the star occupied by stellar winds remains positively charged until the charge excess dissipates through the local electric conductivity.
This work calculates for the first time the global electric charge deposited by cosmic rays in the solar system using cosmic-ray energy spectra measured by the Voyager mission. The charge balance of the cosmic-ray deposition and the concomitant neutralization process is analyzed.
The new and surprising result is that the total electric charge stored in the solar system is not null, implying permanent ambient electric fields, and a magnetic field of dipolar shape of 20-100 ?G from the deposited charge fraction rotating with the Sun.
