  We derive fast forward interplanetary (IP) shock speeds and impact angles to
study the geoeffectivness of 461 IP shocks that occurred from January 1995 to
December 2013 using ACE and WIND spacecraft data. The geomagnetic activity is
inferred from the SuperMAG project data. SuperMAG is a large chain which
employs more than 300 ground stations to compute enhanced versions of the
traditional geomagnetic indices. The SuperMAG auroral electroject SME index, an
enhanced version of the traditional AE index, is used as an auroral power (AP)
indicator. AP intensity jumps triggered by shock impacts are correlated with
both shock speed and impact angle. It is found that high AP intensity events
typically occur when high speed IP shocks impact the Earths magnetosphere with
the shock normal almost parallel to the Sun-Earth line. This result suggests
that symmetric and strong magnetospheric compression leads to favorable
conditions for intense auroral power release, as shown previously by
simulations and observations. Some potential mechanisms will be discussed.
