| 1. |
- Richter, I., et al.
(författare)
-
Observation of a new type of low-frequency waves at comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
- 2015
-
Ingår i: Annales Geophysicae. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 0992-7689 .- 1432-0576. ; 33:8, s. 1031-1036
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on magnetic field measurements made in the innermost coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in its low-activity state. Quasi-coherent, large-amplitude (delta B/B similar to 1), compressional magnetic field oscillations at similar to 40 mHz dominate the immediate plasma environment of the nucleus. This differs from previously studied cometary interaction regions where waves at the cometary ion gyro-frequencies are the main feature. Thus classical pickup-ion-driven instabilities are unable to explain the observations. We propose a cross-field current instability associated with newborn cometary ion currents as a possible source mechanism.
|
|
| 2. |
- Angelopoulos, V., et al.
(författare)
-
First Results from the THEMIS Mission
- 2008
-
Ingår i: Space Science Reviews. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0038-6308 .- 1572-9672. ; 141:1-4, s. 453-476
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- THEMIS was launched on February 17, 2007 to determine the trigger and large-scale evolution of substorms. During the first seven months of the mission the five satellites coasted near their injection orbit to avoid differential precession in anticipation of orbit placement, which started in September 2007 and led to a commencement of the baseline mission in December 2007. During the coast phase the probes were put into a string-of-pearls configuration at 100 s of km to 2 R-E along-track separations, which provided a unique view of the magnetosphere and enabled an unprecedented dataset in anticipation of the first tail season. In this paper we describe the first THEMIS substorm observations, captured during instrument commissioning on March 23, 2007. THEMIS measured the rapid expansion of the plasma sheet at a speed that is commensurate with the simultaneous expansion of the auroras on the ground. These are the first unequivocal observations of the rapid westward expansion process in space and on the ground. Aided by the remote sensing technique at energetic particle boundaries and combined with ancillary measurements and MHD simulations, they allow determination and mapping of space currents. These measurements show the power of the THEMIS instrumentation in the tail and the radiation belts. We also present THEMIS Flux Transfer Events (FTE) observations at the magnetopause, which demonstrate the importance of multi-point observations there and the quality of the THEMIS instrumentation in that region of space.
|
|
| 3. |
- Brown, P., et al.
(författare)
-
Meeting the Magnetic Emc Challenges for the In-Situ Field Measurements on the Juice Mission
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Proceedings of 2019 ESA Workshop on Aerospace EMC (Aerospace EMC). - : IEEE. - 9789082684780
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The JUICE (JUpiter ICy moon Explorer) mission features instrument designs tailored to meet the specific challenges of the respective measuring environment, including EMC constraints. We describe the magnetic field science requirements for this mission and show how they drive the EMC requirements on the spacecraft and selected in-situ instrument configurations. We describe the results of two mutual interference campaigns and discuss the design mitigations employed in order to realise in-situ magnetic and electric field data in-flight with the accuracy required to meet very challenging mission science goals.
|
|
| 4. |
- Cully, Chris M., et al.
(författare)
-
Observational evidence of the generation mechanism for rising-tone chorus
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 38:1, s. L01106-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Chorus emissions are a striking feature of the electromagnetic wave environment in the Earth's magnetosphere. These bursts of whistler-mode waves exhibit characteristic frequency sweeps (chirps) believed to result from wave-particle trapping of cyclotron-resonant particles. Based on the theory of Omura et al. (2008), we predict the sweep rates of chorus elements observed by the THEMIS satellites. The predictions use independent observations of the electron distribution functions and have no free parameters. The predicted chirp rates are a function of wave amplitude, and this relation is clearly observed. The predictive success of the theory lends strong support to its underlying physical mechanism: cyclotron-resonant wave-particle trapping.
|
|
| 5. |
- De Keyser, J., et al.
(författare)
-
In situ plasma and neutral gas observation time windows during a comet flyby : Application to the Comet Interceptor mission
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Planetary and Space Science. - : Elsevier. - 0032-0633 .- 1873-5088. ; 244
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A comet flyby, like the one planned for ESA's Comet Interceptor mission, places stringent requirements on spacecraft resources. To plan the time line of in situ plasma and neutral gas observations during the flyby, the size of the comet magnetosphere and neutral coma must be estimated well. For given solar irradiance and solar wind conditions, comet composition, and neutral gas expansion speed, the size of gas coma and magnetosphere during the flyby can be estimated from the gas production rate and the flyby geometry. Combined with flyby velocity, the time spent in these regions can be inferred and a data acquisition plan can be elaborated for each instrument, compatible with the limited data storage capacity. The sizes of magnetosphere and gas coma are found from a statistical analysis based on the probability distributions of gas production rate, flyby velocity, and solar wind conditions. The size of the magnetosphere as measured by bow shock standoff distance is 105-106 km near 1 au in the unlikely case of a Halley-type target comet, down to a nonexistent bow shock for targets with low activity. This translates into durations up to 103-104 seconds. These estimates can be narrowed down when a target is identified far from the Sun, and even more so as its activity can be predicted more reliably closer to the Sun. Plasma and neutral gas instruments on the Comet Interceptor main spacecraft can monitor the entire flyby by using an adaptive data acquisition strategy in the context of a record-and-playback scenario. For probes released from the main spacecraft, the inter-satellite communication link limits the data return. For a slow flyby of an active comet, the probes may not yet be released during the inbound bow shock crossing.
|
|
| 6. |
- Eastwood, J. P., et al.
(författare)
-
THEMIS observations of a hot flow anomaly : Solar wind, magnetosheath, and ground-based measurements
- 2008
-
Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 35:17, s. L17S03-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The THEMIS spacecraft encountered a Hot Flow Anomaly ( HFA) on the dusk flank of the Earth's bow shock on 4 July 2007, observing it on both sides of the shock. Meanwhile, the THEMIS ground magnetometers traced the progress of the associated Magnetic Impulse Event along the dawn flank of the magnetosphere, providing a unique opportunity to study the transmission of the HFA through the shock and the subsequent downstream response. THEMIS-A, in the solar wind, observed classic HFA signatures. Isotropic electron distributions inside the upstream HFA are attributed to the action of the electron firehose instability. THEMIS-E, just downstream, observed a much more complex disturbance with the pressure perturbation decoupled from the underlying discontinuity. Simple calculations show that the pressure perturbation would be capable of significantly changing the magnetopause location, which is confirmed by the ground-based observations.
|
|
| 7. |
- Edberg, Niklas J. T., et al.
(författare)
-
Simultaneous measurements of Martian plasma boundaries by Rosetta and Mars Express
- 2009
-
Ingår i: Planetary and Space Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0032-0633 .- 1873-5088. ; 57:8-9, s. 1085-1096
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the first two-spacecraft near-simultaneous observations of the Martian bow shock (BS), magnetic pileup boundary (MPB) and photo-electron boundary (PEB) obtained by the plasma instruments onboard Rosetta and Mars Express during the Rosetta Mars fly by on February 25, 2007. Our observations are compared with shape models for the BS and MPB derived from previous statistical studies. The MPB is found at its expected position but the BS for this event is found significantly closer to the planet than expected for the rather slow and moderately dense solar wind. Cross-calibration of the density measurements on the two spacecraft gives a density profile through the magnetosheath, indicating an increasing solar wind flux during the Rosetta passage which is consistent with the multiple BS crossings at the Rosetta exit.
|
|
| 8. |
- Edberg, Niklas, et al.
(författare)
-
Rosetta and Mars Express observations of the influence of high solar wind pressure on the Martian plasma environment
- 2009
-
Ingår i: Annales Geophysicae. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 0992-7689 .- 1432-0576. ; 27:12, s. 4533-4545
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on new simultaneous in-situ observations at Mars from Rosetta and Mars Express (MEX) on how the Martian plasma environment is affected by high pressure solar wind. A significant sharp increase in solar wind density, magnetic field strength and turbulence followed by a gradual increase in solar wind velocity is observed during similar to 24 h in the combined data set from both spacecraft after Rosetta's closest approach to Mars on 25 February 2007. The bow shock and magnetic pileup boundary are coincidently observed by MEX to become asymmetric in their shapes. The fortunate orbit of MEX at this time allows a study of the inbound boundary crossings on one side of the planet and the outbound crossings on almost the opposite side, both very close to the terminator plane. The solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) downstream of Mars are monitored through simultaneous measurements provided by Rosetta. Possible explanations for the asymmetries are discussed, such as crustal magnetic fields and IMF direction. In the same interval, during the high solar wind pressure pulse, MEX observations show an increased amount of escaping planetary ions from the polar region of Mars. We link the high pressure solar wind with the observed simultaneous ion outflow and discuss how the pressure pulse could also be associated with the observed boundary shape asymmetry.
|
|
| 9. |
- Li, W., et al.
(författare)
-
Global distribution of whistler-mode chorus waves observed on the THEMIS spacecraft
- 2009
-
Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 36:9, s. L09104-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Whistler mode chorus waves are receiving increased scientific attention due to their important roles in both acceleration and loss processes of radiation belt electrons. A new global survey of whistler-mode chorus waves is performed using magnetic field filter bank data from the THEMIS spacecraft with 5 probes in near-equatorial orbits. Our results confirm earlier analyses of the strong dependence of wave amplitudes on geomagnetic activity, confinement of nightside emissions to low magnetic latitudes, and extension of dayside emissions to high latitudes. An important new finding is the strong occurrence rate of chorus on the dayside at L > 7, where moderate dayside chorus is present > 10% of the time and can persist even during periods of low geomagnetic activity.
|
|
| 10. |
- Liu, W. L., et al.
(författare)
-
Observation and modeling of the injection observed by THEMIS and LANL satellites during the 23 March 2007 substorm event
- 2009
-
Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research. - 0148-0227 .- 2156-2202. ; 114:2, s. A00C18-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During the encounter of a substorm on 23 March 2007, the THEMIS constellation observed energetic particle injections and dipolarizations in the premidnight sector. Clear injection and dipolarization signatures were observed during the main intensification by three probes ( A, B, and D) in the region around 11 R-E and 2100 local time ( LT). THEMIS C, which was leading in the constellation at 8.3 R-E, also observed a clear injection signature, but the dipolarization was not so clear. From the timing based on these observations, a fast westward expanding ion injection and dipolarization front was identified. In combination with the energetic particle observations from Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) geosynchronous satellites, the particle injection seemed to initiate between 2100 and 0100 LT. This event provides an excellent opportunity to examine the dipolarization and particle injection processes beyond geosynchronous orbit and over a wide LT range. We model this injection event by means of test particle simulation, setting up an initial particle distribution and sending an earthward dipolarization-like pulse from the tail that also expands azimuthally, then recording the ions and electrons at the various satellite locations. Most features of the injected particles are reproduced by the test particle simulation. These include not only the earthward injections but also the fast westward expansion of the injection, as well as the timing of the injections as observed among different satellites that made the observations. On the basis of the observations and the simulation results, we suggest that this substorm injection was initiated around 2300 LT, farther down the tail, and propagated radially inward and expanded azimuthally.
|
|
| 11. |
- Lu, S. W., et al.
(författare)
-
Prolonged Kelvin-Helmholtz Waves at Dawn and Dusk Flank Magnetopause : Simultaneous Observations by MMS and THEMIS
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 875:1
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Kelvin-Helmholtz (K-H) waves predominantly excited at the Earth's low-latitude magnetopause were suggested to be dawn-dusk asymmetric. We report a prolonged simultaneous observations of the K-H waves on the dawn and dusk magnetopause by Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) and THEMIS-A (THA) spacecraft, respectively. The quasi-periodic K-H waves on both flanks have unambiguous low-density and high-speed patterns. The wave periods vary gradually on both flanks, with similar average periods (303 ± 107 s for MMS and 266 ± 102 s for THA). The lag time between the variations of the wave periods is close to the wave propagation time from THA to MMS, which suggests that the K-H waves generate and propagate quasi-symmetrically on both flanks. Larger local magnetic shear angles are observed on the trailing edges by MMS than by THA, which is probably due to the strong magnetic field distortion during the tailward propagation. The increased magnetic shear may excite magnetic reconnection, thus contributing to the formation of the low-latitude boundary layer.
|
|
| 12. |
- Nishimura, Y., et al.
(författare)
-
Estimation of magnetic field mapping accuracy using the pulsating aurora-chorus connection
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 38, s. L14110-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although magnetic field models are widely used in magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling studies to perform field-line mapping, their accuracy has been difficult to estimate experimentally. Taking advantage of the high correlation between lower-band chorus and pulsating aurora, we located the THEMIS spacecraft footprint within similar to km accuracy and calculated the differences from mappings given in widely-used Tsyganenko models. Using 13 conjunctions of the THEMIS spacecraft and ground-based imagers, we found that the Tsyganenko model footprints were located within 1 degrees-2 degrees magnetic latitude and 0.1-0.2 h magnetic local time of our derived footprint. The deviation between the footprints has a consistent dependence on geomagnetic activity. Our results showed that the real magnetic field tends to be less stretched than that in the Tsyganenko models during quiet times and comparable to or more stretched during disturbed times. This approach can be used to advance modeling of field lines that connect to the near-Earth plasma sheet.
|
|
| 13. |
- Nishimura, Y., et al.
(författare)
-
Identifying the Driver of Pulsating Aurora
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 330:6000, s. 81-84
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Pulsating aurora, a spectacular emission that appears as blinking of the upper atmosphere in the polar regions, is known to be excited by modulated, downward-streaming electrons. Despite its distinctive feature, identifying the driver of the electron precipitation has been a long-standing problem. Using coordinated satellite and ground-based all-sky imager observations from the THEMIS mission, we provide direct evidence that a naturally occurring electromagnetic wave, lower-band chorus, can drive pulsating aurora. Because the waves at a given equatorial location in space correlate with a single pulsating auroral patch in the upper atmosphere, our findings can also be used to constrain magnetic field models with much higher accuracy than has previously been possible.
|
|
| 14. |
- Nishimura, Y., et al.
(författare)
-
Multievent study of the correlation between pulsating aurora and whistler mode chorus emissions
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research. - 0148-0227 .- 2156-2202. ; 116, s. A11221-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A multievent study was performed using conjugate measurements of the Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) spacecraft and an all-sky imager during periods of intense lower-band chorus waves. The thirteen identified cases support our previous finding, based on two events, that the intensity modulation of lower-band chorus near the magnetic equator is highly correlated with quasiperiodic pulsating auroral emissions near the spacecraft's magnetic footprint, indicating that lower-band chorus is the driver of the pulsating aurora. Furthermore, we identified a fortuitous measurement made simultaneously by two THEMIS spacecraft with small spatial separation. The two spacecraft were found to be located in a single pulsating chorus patch and the spacecraft footprints were in the same pulsating auroral patch when intense chorus bursts were measured simultaneously, whereas only one of the spacecraft's footprints was in a patch when the other spacecraft did not detect intense chorus. On the basis of this event, we can estimate the pulsating chorus patch size by mapping the pulsating auroral patches from the ionosphere toward the magnetic equator, giving a roughly circular region of similar to 5000 km diameter for corresponding azimuthally elongated patches with similar to 100 km size in the ionosphere. Using a ray-tracing-based calculation of the divergence of chorus raypaths from a point source, together with the corresponding resonant energies, we found that the chorus patch size is most probably not a result of ray divergence but a property of the wave excitation region.
|
|
| 15. |
- Rojo, M., et al.
(författare)
-
Electron moments derived from the Mercury Electron Analyzer during the cruise phase of BepiColombo
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 683
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims. We derive electron density and temperature from observations obtained by the Mercury Electron Analyzer on board Mio during the cruise phase of BepiColombo while the spacecraft is in a stacked configuration. Methods. In order to remove the secondary electron emission contribution, we first fit the core electron population of the solar wind with a Maxwellian distribution. We then subtract the resulting distribution from the complete electron spectrum, and suppress the residual count rates observed at low energies. Hence, our corrected count rates consist of the sum of the fitted Maxwellian core electron population with a contribution at higher energies. We finally estimate the electron density and temperature from the corrected count rates using a classical integration method. We illustrate the results of our derivation for two case studies, including the second Venus flyby of BepiColombo when the Solar Orbiter spacecraft was located nearby, and for a statistical study using observations obtained to date for distances to the Sun ranging from 0.3 to 0.9 AU. Results. When compared either to measurements of Solar Orbiter or to measurements obtained by HELIOS and Parker Solar Probe, our method leads to a good estimation of the electron density and temperature. Hence, despite the strong limitations arising from the stacked configuration of BepiColombo during its cruise phase, we illustrate how we can retrieve reasonable estimates for the electron density and temperature for timescales from days down to several seconds.
|
|
| 16. |
- Roux, A., et al.
(författare)
-
A mechanism for heating electrons in the magnetopause current layer and adjacent regions
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Annales Geophysicae. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 0992-7689 .- 1432-0576. ; 29:12, s. 2305-2316
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Taking advantage of the string-of-pearls configuration of the five THEMIS spacecraft during the early phase of their mission, we analyze observations taken simultaneously in the magnetosheath, the magnetopause current layer and the magnetosphere. We find that electron heating coincides with ultra low frequency waves. It seems unlikely that electrons are heated by these waves because the electron thermal velocity is much larger than the Alfven velocity (V-a). In the short transverse scale (k (perpendicular to) rho(i) >> 1) regime, however, short scale Alfven waves (SSAWs) have parallel phase velocities much larger than V-a and are shown to interact, via Landau damping, with electrons thereby heating them. The origin of these waves is also addressed. THEMIS data give evidence for sharp spatial gradients in the magnetopause current layer where the highest amplitude waves have a large component delta B perpendicular to the magnetopause and k azimuthal. We suggest that SSAWs are drift waves generated by temperature gradients in a high beta, large T-i/T-e magnetopause current layer. Therefore these waves are called SSDAWs, where D stands for drift. SSDAWs have large k(perpendicular to) and therefore a large Doppler shift that can exceed their frequencies in the plasma frame. Because they have a small but finite parallel electric field and a magnetic component perpendicular to the magnetopause, they could play a key role at reconnecting magnetic field lines. The growth rate depends strongly on the scale of the gradients; it becomes very large when the scale of the electron temperature gradient gets below 400 km. Therefore SSDAW's are expected to limit the sharpness of the gradients, which might explain why Berchem and Russell (1982) found that the average magnetopause current sheet thickness to be similar to 400-1000 km (similar to 500 km in the near equatorial region).
|
|
| 17. |
- Tao, J. B., et al.
(författare)
-
A model of electromagnetic electron phase-space holes and its application
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research. - 0148-0227 .- 2156-2202. ; 116, s. A11213-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Electron phase-space holes (EHs) are indicators of nonlinear activities in space plasmas. Most often they are observed as electrostatic signals, but recently Andersson et al. [2009] reported electromagnetic EHs observed by the THEMIS mission in the Earth's plasma sheet. As a follow-up to Andersson et al. [2009], this paper presents a model of electromagnetic EHs where the delta E x B(0) drift of electrons creates a net current. The model is examined with test-particle simulations and compared to the electromagnetic EHs reported by Andersson et al. [2009]. As an application of the model, we introduce a more accurate method than the simplified Lorentz transformation of Andersson et al. [2009] to derive EH velocity (v(EH)). The sizes and potentials of EHs are derived from v(EH), so an accurate derivation of v(EH) is important in analyzing EHs. In general, our results are qualitatively consistent with those of Andersson et al. [2009] but generally with smaller velocities and sizes.
|
|
| 18. |
- Tao, J. B., et al.
(författare)
-
Kinetic instabilities in the lunar wake : ARTEMIS observations
- 2012
-
Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research. - 0148-0227 .- 2156-2202. ; 117, s. A03106-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun (ARTEMIS) mission is a new two-probe lunar mission derived from the Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) mission. On 13 February 2010, one of the two probes, ARTEMIS P1 (formerly THEMIS-B), made the first lunar wake flyby of the mission. We present detailed analysis of the electrostatic waves observed on the outbound side of the flyby that were associated with electron beams. Halekas et al. (2011) derived a net potential across the lunar wake from observations and suggested that the net potential generated the observed electron beams and the electron beams in turn excited the observed electrostatic waves due to kinetic instabilities. The wavelengths and velocities of the electrostatic waves are estimated, using high-resolution electric field instrument data with cross-spectrum analysis and cross-correlation analysis. In general, the estimated wavelengths vary from a few hundred meters to a couple of thousand meters. The estimated phase velocities are on the order of 1000 km s(-1). In addition, we perform 1-D Vlasov simulations to help identify the mode of the observed electrostatic waves. We conclude that the observed electrostatic waves are likely on the electron beam mode branch.
|
|
| 19. |
- Volwerk, M., et al.
(författare)
-
Magnetic holes between Earth and Mercury : BepiColombo cruise phase
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP SCIENCES S A. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 677
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Magnetic holes are ubiquitous structures in the solar wind and in planetary magnetosheaths. They consist of a strong depression of the magnetic field strength, most likely in pressure balance through increased plasma pressure, which is convected with the plasma flow. These structures are created through a plasma temperature anisotropy, where the perpendicular temperature (with respect to the magnetic field) is greater than the parallel temperature. The occurrence rate of these magnetic holes between Earth and Mercury can give us information about how the solar wind conditions develop on their way from the Sun to the outer Solar System. They also give information about basic plasma processes such as diffusion of magnetic structures.Aims. In this study we investigate the occurrence, size, and depth of magnetic holes during the cruise phase of BepiColombo and compare them with earlier studies.Methods. The BepiColombo magnetometer data were used to find the magnetic holes. We determined the size in seconds, the depth with respect to the background field, and the rotation angle of the background field across the structure. Minimum variance analysis delivers the polarization state of the magnetic holes. A direct comparison is made to the results obtained from the MESSENGER cruise phase.Results. We find an almost constant occurrence rate for magnetic holes between Mercury and Earth. The size of the holes is determined by the plasma conditions at the location where they are created and they grow in size, due to diffusion, as they move outwards in the Solar System. The greater the rotation of the background magnetic field across the structure, the larger the minimum size of the magnetic hole is.
|
|
