Search Publications
MAVEN and the total electron content of the Martian ionosphere
Leblanc, François; Chaufray, Jean-Yves; Forget, François +13 more
Model studies of the ionosphere of Mars under daytime conditions reveal that for solar zenith angles of 0°-40°, the shapes and magnitudes of the electron density profiles Ne(h) change by only small amounts. This suggests that midday observations made by MAVEN instruments along slanted orbit segments can be used to represent vertical pro…
On the occurrence of magnetic reconnection equatorward of the cusps at the Earth's magnetopause during northward IMF conditions
Fuselier, S. A.; Trattner, K. J.; Petrinec, S. M. +4 more
Magnetic reconnection changes the topology of magnetic field lines. This process is most readily observable with in situ instrumentation at the Earth's magnetopause as it creates open magnetic field lines to allow energy and momentum flux to flow from the solar wind to the magnetosphere. Most models use the direction of the interplanetary magnetic…
Contribution of energetic and heavy ions to the plasma pressure: The 27 September to 3 October 2002 storm
Dandouras, I.; Daly, P. W.; Klecker, B. +5 more
Magnetospheric plasma sheet ions drift toward the Earth and populate the ring current. The ring current plasma pressure distorts the terrestrial internal magnetic field at the surface, and this disturbance strongly affects the strength of a magnetic storm. The contribution of energetic ions (>40 keV) and of heavy ions to the total plasma pressu…
Comparison of the coronal mass ejection shock acceleration of three widespread SEP events during solar cycle 24
St. Cyr, O. C.; Gopalswamy, N.; Mäkelä, P. +1 more
We studied three solar energetic particle (SEP) events observed on 14 August 2010, 3 November 2011, and 5 March 2013 by Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) A, B, and near-Earth (L1) spacecraft with a longitudinal distribution of particles >90°. Using a forward modeling method combined with extreme ultraviolet and white-light images…
Locating dayside magnetopause reconnection with exhaust ion distributions
Fuselier, S. A.; Trattner, K. J.; Broll, J. M.
Magnetic reconnection at Earth's dayside magnetopause is essential to magnetospheric dynamics. Determining where reconnection takes place is important to understanding the processes involved, and many questions about reconnection location remain unanswered. We present a method for locating the magnetic reconnection X line at Earth's dayside magnet…
Whistler Mode Waves Below Lower Hybrid Resonance Frequency: Generation and Spectral Features
Balikhin, M. A.; Shklyar, D. R.
Equatorial noise in the frequency range below the lower hybrid resonance frequency, whose structure is shaped by high proton cyclotron harmonics, has been observed by the Cluster spacecraft. We develop a model of this wave phenomenon which assumes (as, in general, has been suggested long ago) that the observed spectrum is excited due to loss cone …
Statistical study of polar negative magnetic bays driven by interplanetary fast-mode shocks
Liou, Kan; Sotirelis, Thomas; Gjerloev, Jesper
The question of whether an interplanetary (IP) fast-mode shock can trigger the substorm expansion is still not resolved. Some scientists believe that the substorm expansion can be triggered by a sudden compression of the magnetosphere if a substorm growth phase is in progress (e.g., the magnetosphere precondition hypothesis). Such a hypothesis has…
Magnetically controlled density structures in the topside layer of the Martian ionosphere
Venkateswara Rao, N.; Mohanamanasa, P.; Rao, S. V. B.
Magnetically controlled density structures in the main layer of the Martian ionosphere are regularly detected by the Mars Advance Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounder (MARSIS) on board the Mars Express spacecraft when it passes over the regions of strong crustal magnetic fields. These structures appear as oblique echoes in an ionogram and …
Statistical study of the alteration of the magnetic structure of magnetic clouds in the Earth's magnetosheath
Escoubet, C. P.; Kilpua, E. K. J.; Turc, L. +2 more
The magnetosheath plays a central role in the solar wind-magnetospheric coupling. Yet the effects of its crossing on solar wind structures such as magnetic clouds (MCs) are generally overlooked when assessing their geoeffectivity. Using 82 MCs observed simultaneously in the solar wind and the magnetosheath, we carry out the first statistical study…
Comparative study of three reconnection X line models at the Earth's dayside magnetopause using in situ observations
Walsh, B. M.; Sibeck, D. G.; Gonzalez, W. D. +3 more
This work examines the large-scale aspects of magnetic field reconnection at the Earth's dayside magnetopause. We use two sets of reconnection events, which are identified mostly by the in situ detection of accelerated and Alfvénic plasma flows. We intercompare three analytical models that predict the reconnection X line location and orientation, …