Search Publications
Multiscale study of electron energization during unsteady reconnection events
Lapenta, Giovanni; El-Alaoui, Mostafa; Walker, Raymond J. +2 more
Understanding particle acceleration in the magnetotail during substorms requires knowledge of changes in the global magnetospheric configuration and the local regions of intense fields and microinstabilities caused by processes associated with reconnection. We simulated a substorm on 15 February 2008 by coupling the University of California, Los A…
Technique for diagnosing the flapping motion of magnetotail current sheets based on single-point magnetic field analysis
Barabash, S.; Futaana, Y.; Wei, Y. +5 more
The magnetotail current sheet is active and often flaps back and forth. Knowledge about the flapping motion of current sheet is essential to explore the related magnetotail dynamic processes, e.g., plasma instabilities. Due to the inability of single-point measurements to separate the spatial-temporal variation of magnetic field, the moving veloci…
A statistical study on the whistler waves behind dipolarization fronts
Yuan, Zhigang; Yu, Xiongdong; Huang, Shiyong +5 more
We present a statistical study of whistler waves behind dipolarization fronts (DFs) based on the Cluster satellites measurements during the years 2001-2007. We find 732 DFs during the 7 year tail periods (XGSM ≤ -8 RE and |YGSM| ≤ 10 RE) in the plasma sheet. By constraining the whistler waves in a 1 min …
Down-tail mass loss by plasmoids in Jupiter's and Saturn's magnetospheres
Jackman, C. M.; Nichols, J. D.; Cowley, S. W. H.
Recent estimates of the plasma mass-loss rates by the formation and down-tail propagation of plasmoids observed in the plasma sheet in Jupiter's and Saturn's magnetosphere fall short of inner moon source rates by at least an order of magnitude. Here we argue that on the time scale between large-scale disconnection events, ~15 h at Jupiter and ~45 …
Evidence of scale height variations in the Martian ionosphere over the solar cycle
Lester, M.; Milan, S. E.; Morgan, D. D. +5 more
Solar cycle variations in solar radiation create density changes in any planetary ionosphere, which are well established in the Earth's case. At Mars, however, the ionospheric response to such changes is not well understood. We show the solar cycle impact on the topside ionosphere of Mars, using data from the Mars Advance Radar for Subsurface and …
Time delay of interplanetary magnetic field penetration into Earth's magnetotail
Petrukovich, A. A.; Wei, Y.; Zhang, T. L. +6 more
Many previous studies have demonstrated that the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) can control the magnetospheric dynamics. Immediate magnetospheric responses to the external IMF have been assumed for a long time. The specific processes by which IMF penetrates into magnetosphere, however, are actually unclear. Solving this issue will help to acc…
Plasmapause formation at Saturn
Coates, A. J.; Thomsen, M. F.; Jackman, C. M. +3 more
Cassini observations during a rapid, high-latitude, dawnside pass from Saturn's lobe to inner magnetosphere on 25 June 2009 provide strong evidence for the formation of a "plasmapause" at Saturn by Vasyliunas-type nightside reconnection of previously mass-loaded flux tubes. A population of hot, tenuous plasma that lies between the lobe and the den…
A statistical analysis of Pi2-band waves in the plasma sheet and their relation to magnetospheric drivers
Zhang, T. L.; Nakamura, R.; Baumjohann, W. +5 more
We use the Cluster data from 2001 to 2009 to investigate the occurrence of Pi2-band waves in the plasma sheet. To study the generation mechanisms of these waves, we examine the association between Pi2-band waves and dynamic processes in the plasma sheet (fast flows and substorm activity) and the direction of the solar wind velocity. For a total of…
The interaction between ULF waves and thermal plasma ions at the plasmaspheric boundary layer during substorm activity
Ren, J.; Zong, Q. G.; Wang, Y. F. +1 more
During a substorm on 27 January 2004, energetic particle injections associated with ULF waves have been detected when Cluster fleet was traveling inbound in the Southern Hemisphere. Substorm-injected energetic particles are strong and clearly modulated by these ULF waves. The ULF waves with the period of 1 min are probably the third harmonic mode.…
Ion acceleration dependence on magnetic shear angle in dayside magnetopause reconnection
Fuselier, S. A.; Trattner, K. J.; Petrinec, S. M. +2 more
Magnetic reconnection at the Earth's magnetopause plays an important role in magnetospheric dynamics. Understanding the dynamics requires theory and observations. Previous theoretical work suggests that for no guide field, ions in the exhaust region on the magnetosheath side of the boundary counterstream with a velocity separation that is twice th…