Search Publications
Cluster observations of electron holes in association with magnetotail reconnection and comparison to simulations
Balogh, A.; Lucek, E.; André, M. +8 more
Large-amplitude (up to ∼50 mV/m) solitary waves, identified as electron holes, have been observed during waveform captures on two of the four Cluster satellites during several plasma sheet encounters that have been identified as the passage of a magnetotail reconnection x line. The electron holes were seen near the outer edge of the plasma sheet, …
Cluster observations of an intense normal component of the electric field at a thin reconnecting current sheet in the tail and its role in the shock-like acceleration of the ion fluid into the separatrix region
Balogh, A.; Lucek, E. A.; Reme, H. +12 more
Measurements from the Cluster spacecraft of electric fields, magnetic fields, and ions are used to study the structure and dynamics of the reconnection region in the tail at distances of ∼18 RE near 22.4 MLT on 1 October 2001. This paper focuses on measurements of the large amplitude normal component of the electric field observed in th…
Evolution and characteristics of global Pc5 ULF waves during a high solar wind speed interval
Balogh, A.; Lavraud, B.; Wild, J. A. +9 more
We present an interval of extremely long-lasting narrow-band Pc5 pulsations during the recovery phase of a large geomagnetic storm. These pulsations occurred continuously for many hours and were observed throughout the magnetosphere and in the dusk-sector ionosphere. The subject of this paper is the favorable radial alignment of the Cluster, Polar…
High-altitude cusp flow dependence on IMF orientation: A 3-year Cluster statistical study
Fedorov, A.; Budnik, E.; Grigoriev, A. +7 more
We report on the statistical properties of the plasma flows measured by the Cluster spacecraft in the high-altitude cusp region of the Northern Hemisphere as a function of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) orientation, with selected clock angle intervals. The technique uses a magnetic field model, taking into account the actual solar wind co…
Energy deposition by Alfvén waves into the dayside auroral oval: Cluster and FAST observations
Balogh, A.; Dandouras, I.; Fazakerley, A. N. +16 more
We report in situ observations from the Cluster and FAST spacecraft showing the deposition of energy into the auroral ionosphere from broadband ULF waves in the cusp and low-latitude boundary layer. A comparison of the wave Poynting flux with particle energy and flux at both satellites indicates that energy transfer from the broadband waves to the…
Plasma sheet turbulence observed by Cluster II
Balogh, A.; Khurana, K. K.; Kistler, L. M. +8 more
Cluster fluxgate magnetometer (FGM) and ion spectrometer (CIS) data are employed to analyze magnetic field fluctuations within the plasma sheet during passages through the magnetotail region in the summers of 2001 and 2002 and, in particular, to look for characteristics of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence. Power spectral indices determined fro…
Contribution of nonadiabatic ions to the cross-tail current in an O+ dominated thin current sheet
Lundin, R.; Balogh, A.; Klecker, B. +8 more
During storm times, O+ can dominate both the pressure and the density in the plasma sheet. Because of the contribution from ion outflow, the plasma sheet is already oxygen-rich prior to substorm onset. At substorm onset the fraction of O+ contributing to the pressure and density increases. In the O+ dominated thin …
Solar wind control of the radial distance of the magnetic reconnection site in the magnetotail
Nakamura, R.; Fujimoto, M.; Baumjohann, W. +6 more
To understand magnetotail dynamics, it is essential to determine where magnetic reconnection takes place in the near-Earth magnetotail during substorms. The Geotail spacecraft thoroughly surveyed the near-Earth plasma sheet at radial distances of 10-31 RE during the years 1995-2003. Thirty-four clear reconnection events were identified …
Cluster observations of traveling compression regions in the near-tail
Balogh, A.; Glassmeier, K. -H.; Owen, C. J. +6 more
Examination of Cluster measurements has revealed the presence of traveling compression regions (TCRs) in the lobes of the Earth's magnetotail at X ∼ -11-19 RE. These TCRs strongly resemble those observed in the more distant tail, but their mean duration is only ∼35 s as compared with ∼160 s for the TCRs in the distant tail. Furthermore,…
Characteristics of the magnetosheath electron boundary layer under northward interplanetary magnetic field: Implications for high-latitude reconnection
Balogh, A.; Thomsen, M. F.; Lavraud, B. +7 more
We analyze Cluster data to explore the statistical properties of the magnetosheath electron boundary layer, observed outside the high-latitude dayside magnetopause, under northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). We investigate the dependence of the presence and directionality of heated magnetosheath electrons in this layer on the geomagnetic…