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At least 181 records · Page 10
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NASA NTRS1971

Magnetospheric substorms in the distant magnetotail observed by Imp 3.

Study of variations of the magnetic field and plasma sheet in the distant magnetotail (20 to 40 earth radii) during magnetospheric substorms on the basis of the Imp 3 magnetic-field and particle data. Depending on the locations of the satellite with respect to the boundary of the plasma sheet, the variations differ greatly. However, the present results and the results of other workers give a clear indication of an increase of the magnitude of the field outside the plasma sheet and of the simultaneous ?thinning' of the plasma sheet during an early phase of substorms. At about the maximum epoch or during the recovery phase of substorms, the plasma sheet expands and appears to be inflated to at least the presubstorm level. Furthermore, a large excessive flux of the magnetic (approximately equal to Z component) field, as compared with the flux of the original dipole field, appears across the neutral sheet.

Meng, C. I.↗
NASA NTRS1973

The magnetotail and substorms

The tail plays a very active and important role in substorms. Magmetic flux eroded from the dayside magnetosphere is stored here. As more and more flux is transported to the magnetotail and stored, the boundary flares more, the field strength in the tail increases, and the currents strengthen and move closer to the earth. Further, the plasma sheet thins and the magnetic flux crossing the neutral sheet lessens. The experimental evidence for these processes is discussed and a phenomenological or qualitative model of the substorm sequence is presented. In this model, the flux transport is driven by the merging of the magnetospheric and interplanetary magnetic fields. During the growth phase of substorms the merging rate on the dayside magnetosphere exceeds the reconnection rate in the neutral sheet.

Russell, C. T.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Magnetic field configuration in the magnetotail near 60 earth radii

The magnetic field line configuration in the geomagnetic tail near 60 earth radii is examined on the basis of nearly 3 years of magnetometer data from the lunar-orbiting Explorer 35 satellite. The magnetotail field line characteristics inside the plasma sheet and in the high-latitude tail, i.e., outside the plasma sheet, are separately examined. In the high-latitude tail the magnetic field lines systematically diverge in both longitudinal (east-west) and latitudinal (north-south) directions; the divergence angle between field lines near the dusk flank and those near the dawn flank is about 14 deg, but the divergence along the Z direction is only about 8 deg. The degree of divergence is found to be greater in the evening side than in the morning side and greater in the northern tail than in the southern tail. Inside the plasma sheet the field lines deviate by about 19 deg from the sun-earth line, and the spatial distribution of the field line deviation does not have any systematic tendency.

Meng, C.-I.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Jupiter's magnetotail as the source of interplanetary Jovian MeV electrons observed at earth

The source of interplanetary Jovian MeV electron enhancements observed at earth is found to be Jupiter's magnetotail. If an average solar wind speed of 400 km/sec is assumed, the main region of emission extends from about 1.0 AU downstream from Jupiter to about 2.0 AU beyond the planet. (If a value of 350 km/sec is assumed, it extends from about 0.4 AU to about 1.2 AU.) Individual 'active' zones are about 0.2 AU in length. It is proposed that interplanetary magnetic field line connection with the tail is the mechanism providing the Jovian electrons observed at earth.

Pesses, M. E.↗
NASA NTRS1976

The magnetosphere of Venus - Evidence for a boundary layer and a magnetotail

Mariner 5 magnetic field data collected during its flyby of Venus are evaluated in the light of reexamination of Venera data and in the context of present knowledge on the interaction of the solar wind with the earth. Attention is focused on an analysis of 4 phenomenological regions: magnetosheath, boundary layer, tail, and upstream waves. Enough evidence is revealed for a boundary layer beginning in the dayside ionosphere. The study affirms the possibility that Venus has an intrinsic magnetotail; the key elements of this identification are the positions of the Mariner 5, Venera 4 and Venera 9 magnetopause crossings and the agreements of the polarity of the field during the Mariner 5 and Venera 9 wake traversals with the direction of the implied Venera 4 dipole moment.

Russell, C. T.↗
NASA NTRS1976

On tenuous plasmas, fireballs, and boundary layers in the earth's magnetotail

The plasma instrumentation (the Lepedea) and the magnetometer aboard IMP 8 performed correlative measurements of magnetic fields and plasmas within the geomagnetic tail at geocentric radial distances of about 23-46 R-E during March-October 1974. The hot tenuous plasmas within the plasma sheet were found to be in a state of almost continuous flow and were threaded with northward, or closed geomagnetic lines. The satellite encountered a region of acceleration in the magnetotail, the 'fireball' which exhibits strong jetting of plasmas in excess of 1000 km/s, proton temperatures of about 10 to the 7th K, disordered magnetic fields, southward magnetic fields during tailward jetting of plasmas, and northward magnetic fields for fast plasma flows toward earth. In addition, the magnetosheath plasmas within the boundary layers which are contiguous to the plasma sheet display evidence of plasma heating, great changes in bulk flow velocities, and acceleration of energetic electrons with an energy of greater than 45 keV.

Frank, L. A.↗
NASA NTRS1977

The magnetopause electron layer along the distant magnetotail

An energetic electron layer is found immediately adjacent to, and outside of, the magnetopause surface along the distant magnetotail. The layer has been detected by instrumentation aboard the earth-orbiting spacecraft IMP-8 and is observed for electrons with energies above about 200 keV. The present study shows that such electrons form a layer about 3 earth radii thick and are strongly streaming in a well-ordered pattern, especially along the dusk magnetopause. The energy dissipation implied by the persistent flow may be a direct indication of nearly continuous magnetic merging at or near the magnetopause.

Baker, D. N.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Observations of energetic electrons /E no less than about 200 keV/ in the earth's magnetotail - Plasma sheet and fireball observations

An earlier paper by the authors (1976) has reported on energetic electron anisotropies observed in conjunction with the acceleration regions identified by Frank et al., (1976). The present paper gives more detailed analyses of observations in the distant plasma sheet, including specific features of intensities, energy spectra, and pitch angle distributions of the very energetic electrons associated with intense plasma particle events, with energies ranging between 50 eV and 45 keV, detected with an electron/isotope spectrometer aboard the earth-orbiting spacecraft Imp 8. Two domains are considered: the plasma sheet and the regions near and within the localized magnetotail acceleration regions known as the fireball regions. The instrumentation used offered a number of observational advantages over many previous studies, including inherently low background, large geometric factors, excellent species identification, good angular distribution measurement capability, and availability of high resolution of differential intensities.

Baker, D. N.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Localized induced electric field within the magnetotail

The conversion of magnetic energy, stored within the magnetotail during the growth phase, into particle kinetic energy is studied by taking induced electric fields, due to explicit time dependence of magnetic fields, into consideration. The polarization of a plasma in the presence of such a field is discussed, and the topological difference between a polarized and an induced electric field, namely that one is irrotational and the other is not, is pointed out. A localized perturbation in neutral sheet current is also discussed.

Heikkila, W. J.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Microstructure of a magnetotail fireball

We use high time resolution data from the magnetometer, LEPEDEA and plasma wave analyzer on IMP-7 to examine the microstructure of a long-duration magnetotail fireball event observed during an extended quiet period on November 9, 1972. We demonstrate that the magnetic field is turbulent with fluctuation time scales down to several seconds. These findings suggest that the magnetic merging process may be a highly turbulent one, possibly associated with a form of the tearing mode instability.

Coroniti, F. V.↗
NASA NTRS1978

On the configuration of the magnetotail near midnight during quiet and weakly disturbed periods - State of the magnetosphere

Particle and field data are analyzed for a number of magnetically quiet days. It is shown that the magnetotail near midnight may exist for hours at a time in widely different quasi-stable configurations which, in their limit, can be characterized as being (1) fairly dipolelike to about 15 R(E), beyond which the field becomes taillike; and (2) dipolelike to only about 10 R(E), beyond which the field becomes taillike. These different states affect both the dynamics of the substorm and the evolution of the pitch angle distributions of energetic electrons in the near-earth plasma sheet past midnight. During quiet times, the plasma sheet in its azimuthal variation is at its thinnest in the region near midnight.

West, H. I., Jr.↗
NASA NTRS1978

The magnetopause energetic electron layer. I - Observations along the distant magnetotail

Instrumentation aboard Imp 8 was used to study the magnetopause energetic electron layer along the distant magnetotail, and the observations are discussed. The inner edge of the layer corresponds to the magnetopause boundary, and energetic electrons within the layer persistently stream tailward along local magnetosheath field lines. Pitch angles of electrons along the dusk magnetopause are often restricted to values less than approximately 40 deg, while along the dawnside of the tail somewhat larger pitch angles are normally seen. The differential energy spectra of electrons in the layer, the intensity enhancements, and the average directional intensities are characterized.

Baker, D. N.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Large amplitude substorm motion of the magnetotail boundary

During a period of several days when the solar wind was relatively quiet, the magnetotail boundary near lunar distance swept back and forth past Explorer 33 as the spacecraft traveled through a distance perpendicular to the earth-sun line of about 17 earth radii. The boundary crossings are remarkably well-correlated with peaks in the AE index, even though the magnitudes of the peaks are only on the order of 200 nT. Examination of the regions of multiple crossings on other Explorer 33 and 35 orbits reveals that they commonly cover large distances perpendicular to the earth-sun line, although correlation with AE is often obscured, probably by external solar wind conditions. It is concluded that a substantial fraction of the scatter in published statistical plots of boundary crossing positions can be accounted for in terms of an internal substorm-related motion with an amplitude of 5-8 earth radii. The data suggest that the motion takes the form of a compressional deformation wave convecting down the tail.

Crooker, N. U.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Simultaneous measurements of magnetotail dynamics by IMP spacecraft

Changes in tail energy density during substorms in the magnetotail are given. In addition to plasma sheet thinnings seen prior to substorm onsets, a gradual decrease in plasma beta was detected in the deep tail which precedes onset and the more prominent plasma disappearance that typically accompanies it. The frequency of thinnings and the regions over which they occurred indicate that drastic changes in plasma sheet thickness are common features of substorms which occur at all locations across the tail.

Fairfield, D. H.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Energetic particles in the pre-dawn magnetotail of Jupiter

A detailed account is given of the energetic electron and proton populations as observed with Voyagers 1 and 2 during their passes through the dawn magnetotail of Jupiter. The region between 20 and 150 R sub J is dominated by a thin plasma sheet, where trapped energetic electron and proton fluxes reach their maximum. Proton spectra can be represented by an exponential in rigidity with a characteristic energy of approximately 50 keV. Proton anisotropies were consistent with corotation even at 100 R sub J. A major proton acceleration event as well as several cases of field aligned proton streaming were observed. The flux of 0.4 MeV protons decreases by three orders of magnitude between 30 and 90 R sub J and then remains relatively constant to the magnetopause. Fine structure in the data indicate longitudinal asymmetries with respect to the dipole orientation. Electron spectra in the magnetosheath and interplanetary space are modulated by the Jovian longitude relative to the subsolar point.

Schardt, A. W.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Multiple crossings of a very thin plasma sheet in the Earth's magnetotail

High resolution magnetic field, plasma and energetic particle data from the IMP-8 spacecraft were studied for multiple crossings of the Earth's magnetotail plasma sheet when it becomes thin during magnetospheric substorms. Traversals recur on a time scale of several minutes and they are associated with high velocity plasma flows that are usually directed tailward but are occasionally directed earthward for brief intervals. Observations are explained by rapid oscillations of a plasma sheet that is only a few thousand km thick, a dimension comparable to the gyroradius of energetic protons. Differences in the angular distributions of the two energies indicate that the higher energy protons are preferentially located on field lines deeper in the tail lobe. A neutral line acceleration model is supported tailward streaming energetic electrons which are occasionally present at the lobe plasma sheet interface.

Fairfield, D. H.↗
NASA NTRS1980

Streaming energetic electrons in earth's magnetotail - Evidence for substorm-associated magnetic reconnection

This letter reports the results of a systematic study of streaming greater than 200 keV electrons observed in the magnetotail with the Caltech Electron/Isotope Spectrometers aboard IMP-7 and IMP-8. A clear statistical association of streaming events with southward magnetic fields, often of steep inclination, and with substorms as evidenced by the AE index is demonstrated. These results support the interpretation that streaming energetic electrons are indicative of substorm-associated magnetic reconnection in the near-earth plasma sheet.

Bieber, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Simultaneous measurements of magnetotail dynamics by IMP spacecraft

Pressure in the magnetotail is investigated using observations obtained by IMP spacecraft. Using combined field and plasma data, the approximate balance of pressure between the high beta plasma sheet and the low beta tail lobes is demonstrated. The changes in this pressure during substorms and the characteristics of the plasma and field that produce it are discussed. A distance of about 15 earth radii separates an inner region where the plasma sheet thins during the hour before substorm onset from an outer region where the plasma sheet thins within 5 or 10 min of the time of onset. Substorm onset and plasma sheet expansion in the inner region are simultaneous if the spacecraft is near the equatorial plane. This expansion may be delayed as much as a few tens of minutes if the spacecraft is at high latitudes.

Fairfield, D. H.↗