| 1. |
- Alm, Love, et al.
(författare)
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Magnetotail Hall Physics in the Presence of Cold Ions
- 2018
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : Blackwell Publishing Ltd. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 45:20, s. 10,941-10,950
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the first in situ observation of cold ionospheric ions modifying the Hall physics of magnetotail reconnection. While in the tail lobe, Magnetospheric Multiscale mission observed cold (tens of eV) E × B drifting ions. As Magnetospheric Multiscale mission crossed the separatrix of a reconnection exhaust, both cold lobe ions and hot (keV) ions were observed. During the closest approach of the neutral sheet, the cold ions accounted for ∼30% of the total ion density. Approximately 65% of the initial cold ions remained cold enough to stay magnetized. The Hall electric field was mainly supported by the j × B term of the generalized Ohm's law, with significant contributions from the ∇·P e and v c ×B terms. The results show that cold ions can play an important role in modifying the Hall physics of magnetic reconnection even well inside the plasma sheet. This indicates that modeling magnetic reconnection may benefit from including multiscale Hall physics.
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| 2. |
- Andrews, David J., et al.
(författare)
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Ionospheric plasma density variations observed at Mars by MAVEN/LPW
- 2015
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 42:21, s. 8862-8869
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on initial observations made by the Langmuir Probe and Waves relaxation sounding experiment on board the NASA Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission. These measurements yield the ionospheric thermal plasma density, and we use these data here for an initial survey of its variability. Studying orbit-to-orbit variations, we show that the relative variability of the ionospheric plasma density is lowest at low altitudes near the photochemical peak, steadily increases toward higher altitudes and sharply increases as the spacecraft crosses the terminator and moves into the nightside. Finally, despite the small volume of data currently available, we show that a clear signature of the influence of crustal magnetic fields on the thermal plasma density fluctuations is visible. Such results are consistent with previously reported remote measurements made at higher altitudes, but crucially, here we sample a new span of altitudes between similar to 130 and similar to 300 km using in situ techniques.
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| 3. |
- Artemyev, A. V., et al.
(författare)
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Field-Aligned Currents Originating From the Magnetic Reconnection Region : Conjugate MMS-ARTEMIS Observations
- 2018
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 45:12, s. 5836-5844
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Near-Earth magnetic reconnection reconfigures the magnetotail and produces strong plasma flows that transport plasma sheet particles and electromagnetic energy to the inner magnetosphere. An essential element of such a reconfiguration is strong, transient field-aligned currents. These currents, believed to be generated within the plasma sheet and closed at the ionosphere, are responsible for magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling during substorms. We use conjugate measurements from Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) at the plasma sheet boundary (around x approximate to- 10R(E)) and Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun (ARTEMIS) at the equator (around x approximate to- 60R(E)) to explore the potential generation region of these currents. We find a clear correlation between the field-aligned current intensity measured by MMS and the tailward plasma sheet flows measured by ARTEMIS. To better understand the origin of this correlation, we compare spacecraft observations with results from 3-D particle-in-cell simulations of magnetotail reconnection. The comparison reveals that field-aligned currents and plasma flows start, wax, and wane due to the development of a reconnection region between MMS (near-Earth) and ARTEMIS (at lunar distance). A weak correlation between the field-aligned current intensity at MMS and earthward flow magnitudes at ARTEMIS suggests that distant magnetotail reconnection does not significantly contribute to the generation of the observed near-Earth currents. Our findings support the idea that the dominant role of the near-Earth magnetotail reconnection in the field-aligned current generation is likely responsible for their transient nature, whereas more steady distant tail reconnection would support long-term field-aligned current system. Plain Language Summary Field-aligned currents connect the Earth magnetotail and ionosphere, proving energy and information transport from the region where main energy release process, magnetic reconnection, occurs to the region where the collisional energy dissipation takes place. Therefore, investigation and modeling of the field-aligned current generation is important problem of the magnetosphere plasma physics. However, field-aligned current investigation requires simultaneous observations of reconnection signatures in the magnetotail and at high latitudes. Simultaneous and conjugate operation of two multispacecraft missions, Magnetospheric Multiscale and Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun, for the first time provide an opportunity for such investigation. Combining spacecraft observations with results from 3-D particle-in-cell simulations of magnetotail reconnection, we demonstrate that field-aligned currents and plasma flows start, wax, and wane due to the development of a reconnection region between near-Earth (Magnetospheric Multiscale location) and lunar distant tail (Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun location). Our findings support the idea that the dominant role of the near-Earth magnetotail reconnection in the field-aligned current generation is likely responsible for their transient nature, whereas more steady distant tail reconnection would support long-term field-aligned current system.
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| 4. |
- Breuillard, H., et al.
(författare)
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Multispacecraft analysis of dipolarization fronts and associated whistler wave emissions using MMS data
- 2016
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : Blackwell Publishing. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 43:14, s. 7279-7286
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dipolarization fronts (DFs), embedded in bursty bulk flows, play a crucial role in Earth's plasma sheet dynamics because the energy input from the solar wind is partly dissipated in their vicinity. This dissipation is in the form of strong low-frequency waves that can heat and accelerate energetic electrons up to the high-latitude plasma sheet. However, the dynamics of DF propagation and associated low-frequency waves in the magnetotail are still under debate due to instrumental limitations and spacecraft separation distances. In May 2015 the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission was in a string-of-pearls configuration with an average intersatellite distance of 160km, which allows us to study in detail the microphysics of DFs. Thus, in this letter we employ MMS data to investigate the properties of dipolarization fronts propagating earthward and associated whistler mode wave emissions. We show that the spatial dynamics of DFs are below the ion gyroradius scale in this region (approximate to 500km), which can modify the dynamics of ions in the vicinity of the DF (e.g., making their motion nonadiabatic). We also show that whistler wave dynamics have a temporal scale of the order of the ion gyroperiod (a few seconds), indicating that the perpendicular temperature anisotropy can vary on such time scales.
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| 5. |
- Burch, J. L., et al.
(författare)
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High-Frequency Wave Generation in Magnetotail Reconnection : Linear Dispersion Analysis
- 2019
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 46:8, s. 4089-4097
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Plasma and wave measurements from the NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale mission are presented for magnetotail reconnection events on 3 July and 11 July 2017. Linear dispersion analyses were performed using distribution functions comprising up to six drifting bi-Maxwellian distributions. In both events electron crescent-shaped distributions are shown to be responsible for upper hybrid waves near the X-line. In an adjacent location within the 3 July event a monodirectional field-aligned electron beam drove parallel-propagating beam-mode waves. In the 11 July event an electron distribution consisting of a drifting core and two crescents was shown to generate upper-hybrid and beam-mode waves at three different frequencies, explaining the observed broadband waves. Multiple harmonics of the upper hybrid waves were observed but cannot be explained by the linear dispersion analysis since they result from nonlinear beam interactions. Plain Language Summary Magnetic reconnection is a process that occurs throughout the universe in ionized gases (plasmas) containing embedded magnetic fields. This process converts magnetic energy to electron and ion energy, causing phenomena such as solar flares and auroras. The NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale mission has shown that in magnetic reconnection regions there are intense electric field oscillations or waves and that electrons form crescent and beam-like populations propagating both along and perpendicular to the magnetic field. This study shows that the observed electron populations are responsible for high-frequency waves including their propagation directions and frequency ranges.
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| 6. |
- Burch, J. L., et al.
(författare)
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Localized Oscillatory Energy Conversion in Magnetopause Reconnection
- 2018
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 45:3, s. 1237-1245
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Data from the NASA Magnetospheric Multiscale mission are used to investigate asymmetric magnetic reconnection at the dayside boundary between the Earth's magnetosphere and the solar wind. High-resolution measurements of plasmas and fields are used to identify highly localized (similar to 15 electron Debye lengths) standing wave structures with large electric field amplitudes (up to 100 mV/m). These wave structures are associated with spatially oscillatory energy conversion, which appears as alternatingly positive and negative values of J . E. For small guide magnetic fields the wave structures occur in the electron stagnation region at the magnetosphere edge of the electron diffusion region. For larger guide fields the structures also occur near the reconnection X-line. This difference is explained in terms of channels for the out-of-plane current (agyrotropic electrons at the stagnation point and guide field-aligned electrons at the X-line).
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| 7. |
- Cao, D., et al.
(författare)
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MMS observations of whistler waves in electron diffusion region
- 2017
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 44:9, s. 3954-3962
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Whistler waves that can produce anomalous resistivity by affecting electrons' motion have been suggested as one of the mechanisms responsible for magnetic reconnection in the electron diffusion region (EDR). Such type of waves, however, has rarely been observed inside the EDR so far. In this study, we report such an observation by Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission. We find large-amplitude whistler waves propagating away from the X line with a very small wave-normal angle. These waves are probably generated by the perpendicular temperature anisotropy of the -300eV electrons inside the EDR, according to our analysis of dispersion relation and cyclotron resonance condition; they significantly affect the electron-scale dynamics of magnetic reconnection and thus support previous simulations.
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| 8. |
- Chen, L. -J, et al.
(författare)
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Electron Diffusion Regions in Magnetotail Reconnection Under Varying Guide Fields
- 2019
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : Blackwell Publishing. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 46:12, s. 6230-6238
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Kinetic structures of electron diffusion regions (EDRs) under finite guide fields in magnetotail reconnection are reported. The EDRs with guide fields 0.14–0.5 (in unit of the reconnecting component) are detected by the Magnetospheric Multiscale spacecraft. The key new features include the following: (1) cold inflowing electrons accelerated along the guide field and demagnetized at the magnetic field minimum while remaining a coherent population with a low perpendicular temperature, (2) wave fluctuations generating strong perpendicular electron flows followed by alternating parallel flows inside the reconnecting current sheet under an intermediate guide field, and (3) gyrophase bunched electrons with high parallel speeds leaving the X-line region. The normalized reconnection rates for the three EDRs range from 0.05 to 0.3. The measurements reveal that finite guide fields introduce new mechanisms to break the electron frozen-in condition.
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| 9. |
- Chen, Z. Z., et al.
(författare)
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Electron-Driven Dissipation in a Tailward Flow Burst
- 2019
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : AMER GEOPHYSICAL UNION. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 46:11, s. 5698-5706
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Traditionally, the magnetotail flow burst outside the diffusion region is known to carry ions and electrons together (V-i = V-e), with the frozen-in condition well satisfied (E + V-e x B = 0). Such picture, however, may not be true, based on our analyses of the high-resolution MMS (Magnetospheric Multiscale mission) data. We find that inside the flow burst the electrons and ions can be decoupled (V-e not equal V-i), with the electron speed 5 times larger than the ion speed. Such super-Alfvenic electron jet, having scale of 10 d(i) (ion inertial length) in X-GSM direction, is associated with electron demagnetization (E + V-e x B not equal 0), electron agyrotropy (crescent distribution), and O-line magnetic topology but not associated with the flow reversal and X-line topology; it can cause strong energy dissipation and electron heating. We quantitatively analyze the dissipation and find that it is primarily attributed to lower hybrid drift waves. These results emphasize the non-MHD (magnetohydrodynamics) behaviors of magnetotail flow bursts and the role of lower hybrid drift waves in dissipating energies.
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| 10. |
- Cully, Christopher, et al.
(författare)
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THEMIS observations of long-lived regions of large-amplitude whistler waves in the inner magnetosphere
- 2008
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 35:17, s. L17S16-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent reports of large-amplitude whistler waves (> 100 mV/m) in the radiation belts have intensified interest in the role of whistler waves in accelerating radiation belt electrons to MeV energies. Several critical parameters for addressing this issue have not previously been observed, including the occurrence frequency, spatial extent and longevity of regions of large-amplitude whistlers. The THEMIS mission, with multiple satellites in a near-equatorial orbit, offers an excellent opportunity to study these waves. We use data from the Electric Field Instrument (EFI) to show that in the dawn-side radiation belts, especially near L-shells from 3.5 to 5.5, the probability distribution of wave activity has a significant high-amplitude tail and is hence not well-described by long-term time averages. Regions of enhanced wave activity exhibit four-second averaged wave power above 1 mV/m and sub-second bursts up to several hundred mV/m. These regions are spatially localized to at most several hours of local time azimuthally, but can persist in the same location for several days. With large regions of space persistently covered by bursty, large-amplitude waves, the mechanisms and rates of radiation belt electron acceleration may need to be reconsidered.
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