| 1. |
- Argall, M. R., et al.
(författare)
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Electron Dynamics Within the Electron Diffusion Region of Asymmetric Reconnection
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 123:1, s. 146-162
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We investigate the agyrotropic nature of electron distribution functions and their substructure to illuminate electron dynamics in a previously reported electron diffusion region (EDR) event. In particular, agyrotropy is examined as a function of energy to reveal detailed finite Larmor radius effects for the first time. It is shown that the previously reported approximate to 66eV agyrotropic "crescent" population that has been accelerated as a result of reconnection is evanescent in nature because it mixes with a denser, gyrotopic background. Meanwhile, accelerated agyrotropic populations at 250 and 500eV are more prominent because the background plasma at those energies is more tenuous. Agyrotropy at 250 and 500eV is also more persistent than at 66eV because of finite Larmor radius effects; agyrotropy is observed 2.5 ion inertial lengths from the EDR at 500eV, but only in close proximity to the EDR at 66eV. We also observe linearly polarized electrostatic waves leading up to and within the EDR. They have wave normal angles near 90 degrees, and their occurrence and intensity correlate with agyrotropy. Within the EDR, they modulate the flux of 500eV electrons travelling along the current layer. The net electric field intensifies the reconnection current, resulting in a flow of energy from the fields into the plasma. Plain Language Summary The process of reconnection involves an explosive transfer of magnetic energy into particle energy. When energetic particles contact modern technology such as satellites, cell phones, or other electronic devices, they can cause random errors and failures. Exactly how particles are energized via reconnection, however, is still unknown. Fortunately, the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission is finally able to detect and analyze reconnection processes. One recent finding is that energized particles take on a crescent-shaped configuration in the vicinity of reconnection and that this crescent shape is related to the energy conversion process. In our paper, we explain why the crescent shape has not been observed until now and inspect particle motions to determine what impact it has on energy conversion. When reconnection heats the plasma, the crescent shape forms from the cool, tenuous particles. As plasmas from different regions mix, dense, nonheated plasma obscures the crescent shape in our observations. The highest-energy particle population created by reconnection, though, also contains features of the crescent shape that are more persistent but appear less dramatically in the data.
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| 2. |
- Breuillard, H., et al.
(författare)
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New Insights into the Nature of Turbulence in the Earth's Magnetosheath Using Magnetospheric MultiScale Mission Data
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : IOP PUBLISHING LTD. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 859:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Earth's magnetosheath, which is characterized by highly turbulent fluctuations, is usually divided into two regions of different properties as a function of the angle between the interplanetary magnetic field and the shock normal. In this study, we make use of high-time resolution instruments on board the Magnetospheric MultiScale spacecraft to determine and compare the properties of subsolar magnetosheath turbulence in both regions, i. e., downstream of the quasi-parallel and quasi-perpendicular bow shocks. In particular, we take advantage of the unprecedented temporal resolution of the Fast Plasma Investigation instrument to show the density fluctuations down to sub-ion scales for the first time. We show that the nature of turbulence is highly compressible down to electron scales, particularly in the quasi-parallel magnetosheath. In this region, the magnetic turbulence also shows an inertial (Kolmogorov-like) range, indicating that the fluctuations are not formed locally, in contrast with the quasi-perpendicular magnetosheath. We also show that the electromagnetic turbulence is dominated by electric fluctuations at sub-ion scales (f > 1Hz) and that magnetic and electric spectra steepen at the largest-electron scale. The latter indicates a change in the nature of turbulence at electron scales. Finally, we show that the electric fluctuations around the electron gyrofrequency are mostly parallel in the quasi-perpendicular magnetosheath, where intense whistlers are observed. This result suggests that energy dissipation, plasma heating, and acceleration might be driven by intense electrostatic parallel structures/waves, which can be linked to whistler waves.
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| 3. |
- Breuillard, H., et al.
(författare)
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The Properties of Lion Roars and Electron Dynamics in Mirror Mode Waves Observed by the Magnetospheric MultiScale Mission
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 123:1, s. 93-103
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mirror mode waves are ubiquitous in the Earth's magnetosheath, in particular behind the quasi-perpendicular shock. Embedded in these nonlinear structures, intense lion roars are often observed. Lion roars are characterized by whistler wave packets at a frequency similar to 100Hz, which are thought to be generated in the magnetic field minima. In this study, we make use of the high time resolution instruments on board the Magnetospheric MultiScale mission to investigate these waves and the associated electron dynamics in the quasi-perpendicular magnetosheath on 22 January 2016. We show that despite a core electron parallel anisotropy, lion roars can be generated locally in the range 0.05-0.2f(ce) by the perpendicular anisotropy of electrons in a particular energy range. We also show that intense lion roars can be observed up to higher frequencies due to the sharp nonlinear peaks of the signal, which appear as sharp spikes in the dynamic spectra. As a result, a high sampling rate is needed to estimate correctly their amplitude, and the latter might have been underestimated in previous studies using lower time resolution instruments. We also present for the first-time 3-D high time resolution electron velocity distribution functions in mirror modes. We demonstrate that the dynamics of electrons trapped in the mirror mode structures are consistent with the Kivelson and Southwood (1996) model. However, these electrons can also interact with the embedded lion roars: first signatures of electron quasi-linear pitch angle diffusion and possible signatures of nonlinear interaction with high-amplitude wave packets are presented. These processes can lead to electron untrapping from mirror modes.
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| 4. |
- Burch, J. L., et al.
(författare)
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Electron-scale measurements of magnetic reconnection in space
- 2016
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Ingår i: Science. - : AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE. - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 352:6290, s. 1189-
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Magnetic reconnection is a fundamental physical process in plasmas whereby stored magnetic energy is converted into heat and kinetic energy of charged particles. Reconnection occurs in many astrophysical plasma environments and in laboratory plasmas. Using measurements with very high time resolution, NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission has found direct evidence for electron demagnetization and acceleration at sites along the sunward boundary of Earth's magnetosphere where the interplanetary magnetic field reconnects with the terrestrial magnetic field. We have (i) observed the conversion of magnetic energy to particle energy; (ii) measured the electric field and current, which together cause the dissipation of magnetic energy; and (iii) identified the electron population that carries the current as a result of demagnetization and acceleration within the reconnection diffusion/dissipation region.
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| 5. |
- Le Contel, O., et al.
(författare)
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Lower Hybrid Drift Waves and Electromagnetic Electron Space-Phase Holes Associated With Dipolarization Fronts and Field-Aligned Currents Observed by the Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission During a Substorm
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 122:12, s. 12236-12257
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We analyze two ion scale dipolarization fronts associated with field-aligned currents detected by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission during a large substorm on 10 August 2016. The first event corresponds to a fast dawnward flow with an antiparallel current and could be generated by the wake of a previous fast earthward flow. It is associated with intense lower hybrid drift waves detected at the front and propagating dawnward with a perpendicular phase speed close to the electric drift and the ion thermal velocity. The second event corresponds to a flow reversal: from southwward/dawnward to northward/duskward associated with a parallel current consistent with a brief expansion of the plasma sheet before the front crossing and with a smaller lower hybrid drift wave activity. Electromagnetic electron phase-space holes are detected near these low-frequency drift waves during both events. The drift waves could accelerate electrons parallel to the magnetic field and produce the parallel electron drift needed to generate the electron holes. Yet we cannot rule out the possibility that the drift waves are produced by the antiparallel current associated with the fast flows, leaving the source for the electron holes unexplained.
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| 6. |
- Matsui, H., et al.
(författare)
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A Multi-Instrument Study of a Dipolarization Event in the Inner Magnetosphere
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 126:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A dipolarization of the background magnetic field was observed during a conjunction of the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft and Van Allen Probe B on September 22, 2018. The spacecraft were located in the inner magnetosphere at L similar to 6-7 just before midnight magnetic local time (MLT). The radial separation between MMS and Probe B was similar to 1R(E). Gradual dipolarization or an increase of the northward component B-Z of the background field occurred on a timescale of minutes. Exploration of energization and Radiation in Geospace located 0.5 MLT eastward at a similar L shell also measured a gradual increase. The spatial scale was of the order of 1 R-E. On top of that, MMS and Probe B measured B-Z increases, and a decrease in one case, on a timescale of seconds, accompanied by large electric fields with amplitudes > several tens of mV/m. Spatial scale lengths were of the order of the ion inertial length and the ion gyroradius. The inertial term in the momentum equation and the Hall term in the generalized Ohm's law were sometimes non-negligible. These small-scale variations are discussed in terms of the ballooning/interchange instability and kinetic Alfven waves among others. It is inferred that physics of multiple scales was involved in the dynamics of this dipolarization event.
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| 7. |
- Matsui, H., et al.
(författare)
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Dipolarization in the inner magnetosphere during a geomagnetic storm on 7 October 2015
- 2016
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 43:18, s. 9397-9405
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A dipolarization event was observed by the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) spacecraft at L = 3.8 and 19.8 magnetic local time starting at similar to 23:42:36 UT on 7 October 2015. The magnetic and electric fields showed initially coherent variations between the spacecraft. The sunward convection turned tailward after the dipolarization. The observation is interpreted in terms of the pressure balance or the momentum equation. This was followed by a region traversed where the fields were irregular. The scale length was of the order of the ion gyroradius, suggesting the kinetic nature of the fluctuations. Combination of the multi-instrument, multispacecraft data reveals a more detailed picture of the dipolarization event in the inner magnetosphere. Conjunction ionosphere-plasmasphere observations from DMSP, two-dimensional GPS total electron content, the Millstone Hill midlatitude incoherent scatter radar, and AMPERE measurements imply that MMS observations are located on the poleward edge of the ionospheric trough where Region 2 field-aligned currents flow.
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| 8. |
- Matsui, H., et al.
(författare)
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Relativistic Electron Increase During Chorus Wave Activities on the 6-8 March 2016 Geomagnetic Storm
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 122:11, s. 11302-11319
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There was a geomagnetic storm on 6-8 March 2016, in which Van Allen Probes A and B separated by similar to 2.5 h measured increase of relativistic electrons with energies approximately several hundred keV to 1 MeV. Simultaneously, chorus waves were measured by both Van Allen Probes and Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission. Some of the chorus elements were rising tones, possibly due to nonlinear effects. These measurements are compared with a nonlinear theory of chorus waves incorporating the inhomogeneity ratio and the field equation. From this theory, a chorus wave profile in time and one-dimensional space is simulated. Test particle calculations are then performed in order to examine the energization rate of electrons. Some electrons are accelerated, although more electrons are decelerated. The measured time scale of the electron increase is inferred to be consistent with this nonlinear theory.
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| 9. |
- Norgren, C., et al.
(författare)
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Millisecond observations of nonlinear wave-electron interaction in electron phase space holes
- 2022
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Ingår i: Physics of Plasmas. - : AIP Publishing. - 1070-664X .- 1089-7674. ; 29:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Electron phase space holes (EHs) associated with electron trapping are commonly observed as bipolar electric field signatures in both space and laboratory plasma. Until recently, it has not been possible to resolve EHs in electron measurements. We report observations of EHs in the plasma sheet boundary layer, here identified as the separatrix region of magnetic reconnection in the magnetotail. The intense EHs are observed together with an electron beam moving toward the X line, showing signs of thermalization. Using the electron drift instrument onboard the satellites of the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, we make direct millisecond measurements of the electron particle flux associated with individual electron phase space holes. The electron flux is measured at a millisecond cadence in a narrow parallel speed range within that of the trapped electrons. The flux modulations are of order unity and are direct evidence of the strong nonlinear wave-electron interaction that may effectively thermalize beams and contribute to transforming directed drift energy to thermal energy.
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| 10. |
- Wilder, F. D., et al.
(författare)
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Observations of whistler mode waves with nonlinear parallel electric fields near the dayside magnetic reconnection separatrix by the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission
- 2016
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : Blackwell Publishing. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 43:12, s. 5909-5917
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We show observations from the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission of whistler mode waves in the Earth's low-latitude boundary layer (LLBL) during a magnetic reconnection event. The waves propagated obliquely to the magnetic field toward the X line and were confined to the edge of a southward jet in the LLBL. Bipolar parallel electric fields interpreted as electrostatic solitary waves (ESW) are observed intermittently and appear to be in phase with the parallel component of the whistler oscillations. The polarity of the ESWs suggests that if they propagate with the waves, they are electron enhancements as opposed to electron holes. The reduced electron distribution shows a shoulder in the distribution for parallel velocities between 17,000 and 22,000 km/s, which persisted during the interval when ESWs were observed, and is near the phase velocity of the whistlers. This shoulder can drive Langmuir waves, which were observed in the high-frequency parallel electric field data.
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