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Evidence of Alfvén Waves Generated by Mode Coupling in the Magnetotail Lobe

Zhang, Tielong; Sun, Jicheng; Wang, Guoqiang +2 more

Mode coupling is an important mechanism to excite Alfvén waves and has been extensively investigated based on numerical simulations. However, no direct observational evidence has been found regarding to this mechanism in the magnetotail lobe. Here, we report an in-situ observation that an Alfvén wave with a period of several minutes is clearly rel…

In Situ Observation of a Magnetopause Indentation that Is Correspondent to Throat Aurora and Is Caused by Magnetopause Reconnection

Shi, Run; Li, Bin; Zhou, Su +6 more

Throat auroras have been suggested to correspond to magnetopause indentations, but how such indentations can be generated is an open question. Using coordinated magnetopause in situ and two-dimensional auroral imaging observations, we showed that a transient magnetopause crossing observed by Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions durin…

Current Sheet Thinning in the Wake of a Bubble Injection

Nakamura, Rumi; Yang, Jian; Cui, Jun +3 more

A crucial property of the substorm growth phase is the current sheet thinning, which is often attributed to adiabatic convection. Injecting low-entropy bubbles reduce pressure-balance inconsistencies and restore current sheet thickness to its initial value. Recent observations from Cluster and MMS showed additional thinning of the current sheet in…