| 1. |
- Genestreti, K. J., et al.
(författare)
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MMS Observation of Asymmetric Reconnection Supported by 3-D Electron Pressure Divergence
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 123:3, s. 1806-1821
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We identify the electron diffusion region (EDR) of a guide field dayside reconnection site encountered by the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission and estimate the terms in generalized Ohm's law that controlled energy conversion near the X-point. MMS crossed the moderate-shear (similar to 130 degrees) magnetopause southward of the exact X-point. MMS likely entered the magnetopause far from the X-point, outside the EDR, as the size of the reconnection layer was less than but comparable to the magnetosheath proton gyroradius, and also as anisotropic gyrotropic "outflow" crescent electron distributions were observed. MMS then approached the X-point, where all four spacecraft simultaneously observed signatures of the EDR, for example, an intense out-of-plane electron current, moderate electron agyrotropy, intense electron anisotropy, nonideal electric fields, and nonideal energy conversion. We find that the electric field associated with the nonideal energy conversion is (a) well described by the sum of the electron inertial and pressure divergence terms in generalized Ohms law though (b) the pressure divergence term dominates the inertial term by roughly a factor of 5:1, (c) both the gyrotropic and agyrotropic pressure forces contribute to energy conversion at the X-point, and (d) both out-of-the-reconnection-plane gradients (partial derivative/partial derivative M) and in-plane (partial derivative/partial derivative L, N) in the pressure tensor contribute to energy conversion near the X-point. This indicates that this EDR had some electron-scale structure in the out-of-plane direction during the time when (and at the location where) the reconnection site was observed.
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| 2. |
- Vaivads, Andris, et al.
(författare)
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Turbulence Heating ObserveR - satellite mission proposal
- 2016
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Ingår i: JOURNAL OF PLASMA PHYSICS. - 0022-3778. ; 82
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Universe is permeated by hot, turbulent, magnetized plasmas. Turbulent plasma is a major constituent of active galactic nuclei, supernova remnants, the intergalactic and interstellar medium, the solar corona, the solar wind and the Earth's magnetosphere, just to mention a few examples. Energy dissipation of turbulent fluctuations plays a key role in plasma heating and energization, yet we still do not understand the underlying physical mechanisms involved. THOR is a mission designed to answer the questions of how turbulent plasma is heated and particles accelerated, how the dissipated energy is partitioned and how dissipation operates in different regimes of turbulence. THOR is a single-spacecraft mission with an orbit tuned to maximize data return from regions in near-Earth space - magnetosheath, shock, foreshock and pristine solar wind - featuring different kinds of turbulence. Here we summarize the THOR proposal submitted on 15 January 2015 to the 'Call for a Medium-size mission opportunity in ESAs Science Programme for a launch in 2025 (M4)'. THOR has been selected by European Space Agency (ESA) for the study phase.
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| 3. |
- Hwang, K. -J, et al.
(författare)
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Small-Scale Flux Transfer Events Formed in the Reconnection Exhaust Region Between Two X Lines
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 123:10, s. 8473-8488
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report MMS observations of the ion-scale flux transfer events (FTEs) that may involve two main X lines and tearing instability between the two X lines. The four spacecraft detected multiple isolated regions with enhanced magnetic field strength and bipolar B-n signatures normal to the nominal magnetopause, indicating FTEs. The currents within the FTEs flow mostly parallel to B, and the magnetic tension force is balanced by the total pressure gradient force. During these events, the plasma bulk flow velocity was directed southward. Detailed analysis of the magnetic and electric field and plasma moments variations suggests that the FTEs were initially embedded within the exhaust region north of an X line but were later located southward/downstream of a subsequent X line. The cross sections of the individual FTEs are in the range of similar to 2.5-6.8 ion inertial lengths. The observations suggest the formation of multiple secondary FTEs. The presence of an X line in the exhaust region southward of a second X line results from the southward drift of an old X line and the reformation of a new X line. The current layer between the two X lines is unstable to the tearing instability, generating multiple ion-scale flux-rope-type secondary islands.
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| 4. |
- Soucek, J., et al.
(författare)
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EMC Aspects Of Turbulence Heating Observer (THOR) Spacecraft
- 2016
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Ingår i: Proceedings Of 2016 Esa Workshop On Aerospace Emc (Aerospace Emc). - : Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). - 9789292213039
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Turbulence Heating ObserveR (THOR) is a spacecraft mission dedicated to the study of plasma turbulence in near-Earth space. The mission is currently under study for implementation as a part of ESA Cosmic Vision program. THOR will involve a single spinning spacecraft equipped with state of the art instruments capable of sensitive measurements of electromagnetic fields and plasma particles. The sensitive electric and magnetic field measurements require that the spacecraft-generated emissions are restricted and strictly controlled; therefore a comprehensive EMC program has been put in place already during the study phase. The THOR study team and a dedicated EMC working group are formulating the mission EMC requirements already in the earliest phase of the project to avoid later delays and cost increases related to EMC. This article introduces the THOR mission and reviews the current state of its EMC requirements.
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| 5. |
- Toledo-Redondo, S., et al.
(författare)
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Electrostatic Spacecraft Potential Structure and Wake Formation Effects for Characterization of Cold Ion Beams in the Earth's Magnetosphere
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : Blackwell Publishing Ltd. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 124:12, s. 10048-10062
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Cold plasma (up to few tens of electron volts) of ionospheric origin is present most of the time, in most of the regions of the Earth's magnetosphere. However, characterizing it using in situ measurements is difficult, owing to spacecraft electrostatic charging, as often this charging is at levels comparable to or even higher than the equivalent energy of the cold plasma. To overcome this difficulty, active potential control devices are usually placed on spacecraft that artificially reduce spacecraft charging. The electrostatic potential structure around the spacecraft is often assumed to be spherically symmetric, and corrections are applied to the measured particle distribution functions. In this work, we show that large deviations from the spherical model are present, owing to the presence of long electric field booms. We show examples using Magnetospheric MultiScale spacecraft measurements of the electrostatic potential structure and its effect on the measurement of cold ion beams. Overall, we find that particle detectors underestimate the cold ion density under certain conditions, even when their bulk kinetic energy exceeds the equivalent spacecraft potential energy and the ion beam reaches the spacecraft. Active potential control helps in reducing this unwanted effect, but we show one event with large cold ion density (∼10 cm−3) where particle detectors provide density estimates a factor of 3–5 below the density estimated from the plasma frequency. Understanding these wake effects indirectly constrains some properties of the magnetospheric cold ion component, such as their drift energy, direction, and temperature.
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| 6. |
- Li, B., et al.
(författare)
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Magnetospheric Multiscale Observations of ULF Waves and Correlated Low-Energy Ion Monoenergetic Acceleration
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : Blackwell Publishing Ltd. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Low-energy ions of ionospheric origin with energies below 10s of electron volt dominate most of the volume and mass of the terrestrial magnetosphere. However, sunlit spacecraft often become positively charged to several 10s of volts, which prevents low-energy ions from reaching the particle detectors on the spacecraft. Magnetospheric Multiscale spacecraft (MMS) observations show that ultralow-frequency (ULF) waves drive low-energy ions to drift in the E × B direction with a drift velocity equal to V E × B , and low-energy ions were accelerated to sufficient total energy to be measured by the MMS/Fast Plasma Investigation Dual Ion Spectrometers. The maximum low-energy ion energy flux peak seen in MMS1's dual ion spectrometer measurements agreed well with the theoretical calculation of H + ion E × B drift energy. The density of ions in the energy range below minimum energy threshold was between 1 and 3 cm −3 in the magnetosphere subsolar region in this event.
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| 7. |
- Nakamura, R., et al.
(författare)
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Initial Results From the Active Spacecraft Potential Control Onboard Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission
- 2017
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Ingår i: IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science. - : Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). - 0093-3813 .- 1939-9375. ; 45:8, s. 1847-1852
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- NASA's magnetospheric multiscale (MMS) mission was successfully launched in March 2015. The scientific objectives of MMS are to explore and understand fundamental plasma physics processes in the earth's magnetosphere: magnetic reconnection, particle acceleration, and turbulence. The region of scientific interest of MMS is in a tenuous plasma environment where the positive spacecraft potential may reach an equilibrium as high as several tens of volts. The active spacecraft potential control (ASPOC) instrument neutralizes the spacecraft potential by releasing the positive charge produced by indium ion emitters. While the method has successfully been applied to other spacecraft such as Cluster and Double Star, new developments in the design of the emitters and the electronics are enabling lower spacecraft potentials and higher reliability compared to previous missions. In this paper, we report the initial results from the tests of the ASPOC performance during the commissioning phase and discuss the different effects on the particle and field instruments observed at different plasma environments in the magnetosphere.
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| 8. |
- Dimmock, Andrew P., et al.
(författare)
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Direct evidence of nonstationary collisionless shocks in space plasmas
- 2019
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Ingår i: Science Advances. - : AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE. - 2375-2548. ; 5:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Collisionless shocks are ubiquitous throughout the universe: around stars, supernova remnants, active galactic nuclei, binary systems, comets, and planets. Key information is carried by electromagnetic emissions from particles accelerated by high Mach number collisionless shocks. These shocks are intrinsically nonstationary, and the characteristic physical scales responsible for particle acceleration remain unknown. Quantifying these scales is crucial, as it affects the fundamental process of redistributing upstream plasma kinetic energy into other degrees of freedom-particularly electron thermalization. Direct in situ measurements of nonstationary shock dynamics have not been reported. Thus, the model that best describes this process has remained unknown. Here, we present direct evidence demonstrating that the transition to nonstationarity is associated with electron-scale field structures inside the shock ramp.
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