Search Publications
Study on the Curvature and Gradient of the Magnetic Field in Earth's Cusp Region Based on the Magnetic Curvature Analysis Method
Rong, Zhaojin; Shen, Chao; Xiao, Chao +2 more
This paper uses the multiple-point magnetic measurements from the Cluster mission to investigate the curvature and gradient of the magnetic field as well as their relations with the current density inside the cusp region under different interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions. From two event studies, it is shown that the curvature radius of…
A Statistical Study of Ionospheric Boundary Wave Formation at Venus
Zhang, Tielong; Futaana, Yoshifumi; Frahm, Rudy A. +3 more
Previous missions to Venus have revealed that encounters with plasma irregularities of atmospheric origin outside the atmosphere are not uncommon. A number of mechanisms have been proposed to discuss their origins as well as their roles in the atmospheric evolution of Venus. One such mechanism involves an ionopause with a wavelike appearance. By u…
Structure and Dynamics of Three-Dimensional Magnetotail Reconnection
Lapenta, Giovanni; Goldstein, Melvyn L.; El-Alaoui, Mostafa +3 more
We have used a global magnetohydrodynamic simulation and embedded particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation to analyze magnetotail reconnection in and near the electron diffusion region (EDR). Results from the magnetohydrodynamic simulation were used to set the initial and boundary conditions for the large-scale implicit PIC simulation. We examined proxie…
Influence of the IMF Cone Angle on Invariant Latitudes of Polar Region Footprints of FACs in the Magnetotail: Cluster Observation
Dandouras, I.; Kistler, L. M.; Rème, H. +7 more
The influence of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) cone angle θ (the angle between the IMF direction and the Sun-Earth line) on the invariant latitudes of the footprints of the field-aligned currents (FACs) in the magnetotail has been investigated. We performed a statistical study of 542 FAC cases observed by the four Cluster spacecraft in t…
Cassini/MIMI Observations on the Dungey Cycle Reconnection and Kelvin-Helmholtz Instability in Saturn's Magnetosphere
Dialynas, Konstantinos
A new composite analysis of ∼13 years of Cassini's Charge Energy Mass Spectrometer measurements, presented by Allen et al. (2018, https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JA025262), suggests that the asymmetrically distributed suprathermal He++ in Saturn's magnetosphere is due to Dungey cycle relate…
Microchannel Plate Efficiency to Detect Low Velocity Dust Impacts
James, David; Horányi, Mihály; Clark, George +2 more
Recent space experiments suggest that electron and ion energy analyzers using microchannel plates (MCPs) as detectors are also registering direct hits by nanodust particles. To allow the analysis and interpretation of these putative dust events, the detection efficiency of MCPs has to be characterized. We report on a series of experiments to inves…
Modeling, Analysis, and Interpretation of Photoelectron Energy Spectra at Enceladus Observed by Cassini
Schippers, P.; Coates, A. J.; Jones, G. H. +7 more
The Electron Spectrometer (ELS) of the Cassini Plasma Spectrometer has observed photoelectrons produced in the plume of Enceladus. These photoelectrons are observed during Enceladus encounters in the energetic particle shadow where the spacecraft is largely shielded from penetrating radiation by the moon. We present a complex electron spectrum at …
Collisional Heating of Interstellar Helium Flux at 1 AU
Gruntman, Mike
Because of relative motion of the local interstellar medium (LISM) with respect to the Sun, the interstellar wind, interstellar neutral helium atoms enter the heliosphere. Instruments on the Ulysses and Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft measured directional dependencies of intensities, or sky maps, of helium atoms and determined the inters…
Ions Accelerated by Sounder-Plasma Interaction as Observed by Mars Express
Barabash, S.; Frahm, R. A.; Gurnett, D. +6 more
The ion sensor of the Analyzer of Space Plasmas and Energetic Atoms (ASPERA-3) experiment detects accelerated ions during pulses of radio emissions from the powerful topside sounder: the Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding (MARSIS) onboard Mars Express. Accelerated ions (O2+, O+, and lighter …
Traveling Ultralow-Frequency Waves and Their Influences Over Low-Energy, Charged Particles
Zong, Qiu-Gang; Yang, Mu; Zhou, Xu-Zhi +3 more
In Earth's magnetosphere, the behavior of charged particles in response to ultralow-frequency (ULF) waves has long been understood in the framework of their resonant interactions with standing hydromagnetic waves. It has been argued that for impulse-excited waves, it may take a few wave cycles for the standing structure to be fully established; du…