Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,243 records · Page 69
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1994

Ionospheric projections of magnetospheric regions under low and high solar wind pressure conditions

The projection of magnetospheric regions into the dayside ionosphere as determined by particle precipitation characteristics was studied for dependence on solar wind parameters. It was found that the solar wind kinetic pressure p dramatically affected the map of magnetospheric projections. Under the constraint that p greater than or equal 4 nPa(yielding (p) = 5.9 nPa), the area of the cusp (magnetic latitude times magnetic local time extent) was 4.83 degree-hours; whereas under the constraint that p greater than or equal 2 nPa (yielding (p) = 1.5 nPa), the cusp area was only 1.01 degree-hours. The ionospheric footprint of the low-latitude boundary layer was similarly affected. Various possible correlations of p with other solar wind variables, including n, v, and absolute value of B(sub z), proved unable to account for the pressure effect. Because one criterion for identifying the cusp is high fluxes, the effect of nv was investigated with particular care, both in examples and statistically. Again, p itself had by far the most striking effect. Thus we concluded that some physical mechanism is needed to account for the pressure effect. One possibility is that increased direct solar wind plasma penetration of the magnetopause occurs under high-p conditions in the manner suggested by various proponents of impulsive penetration models. An alternative, which we find promising, is that, regardless of the original interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) strength, a high-p solar wind leads to a large compression factor for the magnetosheath field, which is the field actually in contact with the magnetosphere. From this latter viewpoint, the chief effect of high particle pressure is simply to enhance the effectiveness of the interaction of the IMF with the magnetosphere.

Newell, Patrick T.↗
NASA NTRS1979

Lunar physical properties from analysis of magnetometer data

The electromagnetic properties of the lunar interior are discussed with emphasis on (1) bulk, crustal, and local anomalous conductivity; (2) bulk magnetic permeability measurements, iron abundance estimates, and core size limits; (3) lunar ionosphere and atmosphere; and (4) crustal magnetic remanence: scale size measurements and constraints on remanence origin. Appendices treat the phase relationship between the energetic particle flux modulation and current disc penetrations in the Jovian magnetosphere (Pioneer 10 inbound) theories for the origin of lunar magnetism; electrical conductivity anomalies associated with circular lunar maria; electromagnetic properties of the Moon; Mare Serenitatis conductivity anomaly detected by Apollo 16 and Lunokhod 2 magnetometers; and lunar properties from magnetometer data: effects of data errors.

Daily, W. D.↗
NASA NTRS1997

An Analysis of Closure Mechanisms in the Plasma Wake of the TSS-1R Satellite

Collisionless Plasma Expansion (CPE), also known as "plasma expansion into a vacuum," in its most fundamental form, is the process by which a plasma expands into a void, or region highly depleted of particles. In CPE, the expansion is driven by the highly mobile electron constituent of the plasma as it moves across the density gradient and into the void region. A bi-polar electric field is set up between this rapidly expanding electron front and the massive ions, which have a low thermal speed and lag behind in the region of the plasma-void interface. These ions are quickly accelerated by the expansion electric field and can, theoretically, approach the thermal speed of the electrons. CPE is a fundamental and a very robust process in that it only requires that a sharp density gradient exist in a plasma. It has already been observed to exist in various plasmas ranging over five orders of magnitude in density. The range of phenomena in which CPE has been observed includes the closure of plasma wakes created in simulated space plasmas in the laboratory; it was found to be the process controlling the refilling of the wake created by the Space Shuttle in the ionospheric plasma; and recent in situ data, obtained by the WIND spacecraft as it passed through the wake of the earth's moon last year, have shown CPE to be involved in the closure of the Lunar wake. CPE is also expected to influence the morphology and physics of the solar wind interactions with Mercury and Mars, and has been suggested as a potential factor in such wide ranging phenomena as the acceleration of plasma away from the coma of comets and the energization of ions that underlies the upward expansion of the polar wind into the earth's magnetosphere. The Tethered Satellite System (TSS)-1R data provides an opportunity to test this process in situ under semi-controlled conditions. The available data shows the intensity, drift energy and angle of inclination to the wake of the converging ion streams at a down stream distance of one satellite radius (80 CM).

Stone, N. H.↗
NASA NTRS2002

UAH Analysis of TIDE/PSI Data for ISTP Solar Maximum Extended Mission

During the course of this research, several investigations have been carried out at both high and low altitudes. The low altitude studies are those associated with perigee observations of ion field-aligned flows measured by POLAR/TIDE near 5000 km altitude. High altitude studies employed ion observations near apogee (above 6 R(sub E) geocentric). In both cases the observations occur at high latitudes, in or near the polar regions: the southern polar region for the low altitude studies and the northern polar region for the high altitude studies. A study of the relationship between field-aligned flow velocities, fluxes, and densities to convection speeds was published in the Journal of Atmospheric and Terrestrial Physics . Here we have demonstrated an anti-correlation between the 0+ densities and the convection speeds, and a correlation between the parallel upward velocities and the convection speeds, and have discussed these results as being compatible with the Cleft Ion Fountain concept for supplying O(sup +) ions to the polar cap magnetosphere. Another topic investigated was the relationship between TIDE-observed upward and downward parallel O(sup +) bulk velocities near 5000 km altitude over the southern polar regions, and near-simultaneous auroral observations by the Ultra-Violet Imager. We have prepared several overlaid plots of such auroral images across an MLT-ILAT dial plot of the polar regions with upward and downward velocities, as well as other parameters such as ion densities and fluxes. The overlaid plots show quite nicely how upward velocities and crossovers between upward and downward velocities occur in association with auroral forms, while downward flows are associated with dark regions of the polar cap.

Comfort, Richard H.↗
DOE OSTI2018

Wavelet methods for studying the onset of strong plasma turbulence

Recent simulations have demonstrated that coherent current sheets dominate the kinetic-scale energy dissipation in strong turbulence of magnetized plasma. Wavelet basis functions are a natural tool for analyzing turbulent flows containing localized coherent structures of different spatial scales. Here, wavelets are used to study the onset and subsequent transition to fully developed turbulence from a laminar state. Originally applied to neutral fluid turbulence, an iterative wavelet technique decomposes the field into coherent and incoherent contributions. In contrast to Fourier power spectra, finite time Lyapunov exponents, and simple measures of intermittency such as non-Gaussian statistics of field increments, the wavelet technique is found to provide a quantitative measure for the onset of turbulence and to track the transition to fully developed turbulence. The wavelet method makes no assumptions about the structure of the coherent current sheets or the underlying plasma model. Temporal evolution of the coherent and incoherent wavelet fluctuations is found to be highly correlated (a Pearson correlation coefficient of >0.9) with the magnetic field energy and plasma thermal energy, respectively. The onset of turbulence is identified with the rapid growth of a background of incoherent fluctuations spreading across a range of scales and a corresponding drop in the coherent components. This is suggestive of the interpretation of the coherent and incoherent wavelet fluctuations as measures of coherent structures (e.g., current sheets) and dissipation, respectively. The ratio of the incoherent to coherent fluctuations Ric is found to be fairly uniform in the turbulent state across different plasma models and provides an empirical threshold of ~0.1 for turbulence onset. The utility of this technique is illustrated through examples. First, it is applied to the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability from different simulation models including fully kinetic, hybrid (kinetic ion/fluid electron), and Hall MHD simulations. Second, the wavelet diagnostic is applied to the development of turbulence downstream of the bowshock in a global magnetosphere simulation. Finally, the wavelet technique is also shown to be useful as a de-noising method for particle simulations.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1987

Auroral particles

The problems concerning the aurora posed prior to the war are now either solved in principle or were restated in a more fundamental form. The pre-war hypothesis concerning the nature of the auroral particles and their energies was fully confirmed, with the exception that helium and oxygen ions were identified as participating in the auroral particle precipitation in addition to the protons. The nature of the near-Earth energization processes affecting auroral particles was clarified. Charged particle trajectories in various electric field geometries were modeled. The physical problems have now moved from determining the nature and geometry of the electric fields, which accelerate charged particles near the Earth, to accounting for the existence of these electric fields as a natural consequence of the solar wind's interaction with Earth. Ultimately the reward in continuing the work in auroral and magnetospheric particle dynamics will be a deeper understanding of the subtleties of classical electricity and magnetism as applied to situations not blessed with well-defined and invariant geometries.

Evans, David S.↗
NASA NTRS2012

A Suzaku View of Cyclotron Line Sources and Candidates

Seventeen accreting neutron star pulsars, mostly high mass X-ray binaries with half of them Be-type transients, are known to exhibit Cyclotron Resonance Scattering Features (CRSFs) in their X-ray spectra, with characteristic line energies from 10 to 60 keY. To date about two thirds of them, plus a few similar systems without known CRSFs, have been observed with Suzaku. We present an overview of results from these observations, including the discovery of a CRSF in the transient IA1118-61 and pulse phase resolved spectroscopy of OX 301-2. These observations allow for the determination of cyclotron line parameters to an unprecedented degree of accuracy within a moderate amount of observing time. This is important since these parameters vary - e.g., with orbital phase, pulse phase, or luminosity - depending on the geometry of the magnetic field of the pulsar and the properties of the accretion column at the magnetic poles. We briefly introduce a spectral model for CRSFs that is currently being developed and that for the first time is based on these physical properties. In addition to cyclotron line measurements, selected highlights from the Suzaku analyses include dip and flare studies, e.g., of 4U 1907+09 and Vela X-I, which show clumpy wind effects (like partial absorption and/or a decrease in the mass accretion rate supplied by the wind) and may also display magnetospheric gating effects.

Pottschmidt, K.↗
DOE OSTI2015

AB INITIO PULSAR MAGNETOSPHERE: THREE-DIMENSIONAL PARTICLE-IN-CELL SIMULATIONS OF OBLIQUE PULSARS

We present “first-principles” relativistic particle-in-cell simulations of the oblique pulsar magnetosphere with pair formation. The magnetosphere starts to form with particles extracted from the surface of the neutron star. These particles are accelerated by surface electric fields and emit photons capable of producing electron–positron pairs. We inject secondary pairs at the locations of primary energetic particles whose energy exceeds the threshold for pair formation. We find solutions that are close to the ideal force-free magnetosphere with the Y-point and current sheet. Solutions with obliquities ≤40° do not show pair production in the open field line region because the local current density along the magnetic field is below the Goldreich–Julian value. The bulk outflow in these solutions is charge-separated, and pair formation happens in the current sheet and return current layer only. Solutions with higher inclinations show pair production in the open field line region, with high multiplicity of the bulk flow and the size of the pair-producing region increasing with inclination. We observe the spin-down of the star to be comparable to MHD model predictions. The magnetic dissipation in the current sheet ranges between 20% for the aligned rotator and 3% for the orthogonal rotator. Our results suggest that for low obliquity neutron stars with suppressed pair formation at the light cylinder, the presence of phenomena related to pair activity in the bulk of the polar region, e.g., radio emission, may crucially depend on the physics beyond our simplified model, such as the effects of curved spacetime or multipolar surface fields.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2016

Full-wave modeling of EMIC waves near the He + gyrofrequency

Electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves are known to be excited by the cyclotron instability associated with hot and anisotropic ion distributions in the equatorial region of the magnetosphere and are thought to play a key role in radiation belt losses. Although detection of these waves at the ground can provide a global view of the EMIC wave environment, it is not clear what signatures, if any, would be expected. One of the significant scientific issues concerning EMIC waves is to understand how these waves are detected at the ground. In order to solve this puzzle, it is necessary to understand the propagation characteristics of the field-aligned EMIC waves, which include polarization reversal, cutoff, resonance, and mode coupling between different wave modes, in a dipolar magnetic field. However, the inability of ray tracing to adequately describe wave propagation near the crossover cutoff-resonance frequencies in multi-ion plasmas is one of reasons why these scientific questions remain unsolved. Using a recently developed 2-D full-wave code that solves the full-wave equations in global magnetospheric geometry, we demonstrate how EMIC waves propagate from the equatorial region to higher magnetic latitude in an electron-proton-He+ plasma. We find that polarization reversal occurs at the crossover frequency from left-hand polarization (LHP) to right-hand (RHP) polarization and such RHP EMIC waves can either propagate to the inner magnetosphere or reflect to the outer magnetosphere at the Buchsbaum resonance location. Lastly, we also find that mode coupling from guided LHP EMIC waves to unguided RHP or LHP waves (i.e., fast mode) occurs.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRS1985

DE 1 RIMS operational characteristics

The Retarding Ion Mass Spectrometer (RIMS) on the Dynamics Explorer 1 spacecraft observes both the thermal and superthermal (50 eV) ions of the ionosphere and inner magnetosphere. It is capable of measuring the detailed species distribution function of these ions in many cases. It was equipped with an integral electrometer to permit in-flight calibration of the detector sensitivities and variations thereof. A guide to understanding the RIMS data set is given. The reduction process from count rates to physical quantities is discussed in some detail. The procedure used to establish in-flight calibration is described, and results of a comparison with densities from plasma wave measurements are provided. Finally, a discussion is provided of various anomalies in the data set, including changes of channeltron efficiency with time, spin modulation of the axial sensor heads, apparent potential differences between the sensor heads, and failures of the radial head retarding potential sweep and of the -Z axial head aperture plane bias. Studies of the RIMS data set should be conducted only with a thorough awareness of the material presented here, or in collaboration with one of the scientists actively involved with RIMS data analysis.

Olsen, R. C.↗
NASA NTRS2007

Titan Orbiter Aerorover Mission with Enceladus Science (TOAMES)

Cassini and Huygens have made exciting discoveries at Titan and Enceladus, and at the same time made us aware of how little we understand about these bodies. For example, the source, and/or recycling mechanism, of methane in Titan's atmosphere is still puzzling. Indeed, river beds (mostly dry) and lakes have been spotted, and occasional clouds have been seen, but the physics to explain the observations is still mostly lacking, since our "image" of Titan is still sketchy and quite incomplete. Enceladus, only -500 km in extent, is even more puzzling, with its fiery plumes of vapor, dust and ice emanating from its south polar region, "feeding" Saturn's E ring. Long term variability of magnetospheric plasma, neutral gas, E-ring ice grain density, radio emissions, and corotation of Saturn's planetary magnetic field in response to Enceladus plume activity are of great interest for Saturn system science. Both Titan and Enceladus are bodies of considerable astrobiological interest in view of high organic abundances at Titan and potential subsurface liquid water at Enceladus. We propose to develop a new mission to Titan and Enceladus, the Titan Orbiter Aerorover Mission with Enceladus Science (TOAMES), to address these questions using novel new technologies. TOAMES is a multi-faceted mission that starts with orbit insertion around Saturn using aerobraking with Titan's extended atmosphere. We then have an orbital tour around Saturn (for 1-2 years) and close encounters with Enceladus, before it goes into orbit around Titan (via aerocapture). During the early reconnaissance phase around Titan, perhaps 6 months long, the orbiter will use altimetry, radio science and remote sensing instruments to measure Titan's global topography, subsurface structure and atmospheric winds. This information will be used to determine where and when to release the Aerorover, so that it can navigate safely around Titan and identify prime sites for surface sampling and analysis. In situ instruments will sample the upper atmosphere which may provide the seed population for the complex organic chemistry on the surface. The Aerorover will probably use a "hot air" Montgolfier balloon concept using the waste heat from the MMRTG 1-2 kwatts. New technologies will need to be developed and miniaturization will be required to maintain functionality while controlling mass, power and cost. Duty cycling will be used. The Aerorover will have all the instruments needed to sample Titan's atmosphere and surface with possible methane lakes-rivers. It will e.g., use multi-spectral imagers and for last 6 months of mission, balloon payload will land on surface at predetermined site to take core samples of the surface and use seismometers to help probe the interior. All remote (and active) sensors on the orbiter will share a - 1 meter telescope, called MIDAS (Multiple Instrument Distributed Aperture Sensor). MIDAS observations in stable orbit at Titan can provide full global maps of Titan's surface and could additionally provide long term observations of the Saturn system including Enceladus for extended mission phases over many years, potentially for decades. Experience from the Hubble Space Telescope has shown strong public interest and commitment to exciting generational missions.

Sittler, Edward C.↗
DOE OSTI2021

Computational general relativistic force-free electrodynamics: I. Multi-coordinate implementation and testing

General relativistic force-free electrodynamics is one possible plasma-limit employed to analyze energetic outflows in which strong magnetic fields are dominant over all inertial phenomena. The amazing images of black hole (BH) shadows from the Galactic Center and the M87 galaxy provide a first direct glimpse into the physics of accretion flows in the most extreme environments of the universe. The efficient extraction of energy in the form of collimated outflows or jets from a rotating BH is directly linked to the topology of the surrounding magnetic field. We aim at providing a tool to numerically model the dynamics of such fields in magnetospheres around compact objects, such as BHs and neutron stars. To do so, we probe their role in the formation of high energy phenomena such as magnetar flares and the highly variable teraelectronvolt emission of some active galactic nuclei. In this work, we present numerical strategies capable of modeling fully dynamical force-free magnetospheres of compact astrophysical objects. Here, we provide implementation details and extensive testing of our implementation of general relativistic force-free electrodynamics in Cartesian and spherical coordinates using the infrastructure of the E INSTEIN T OOLKIT . The employed hyperbolic/parabolic cleaning of numerical errors with full general relativistic compatibility allows for fast advection of numerical errors in dynamical spacetimes. Such fast advection of divergence errors significantly improves the stability of the general relativistic force-free electrodynamics modeling of BH magnetospheres.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1977

Introduction: Man and his total environment

Environmental changes and the utilization of finite resources are analyzed. Beyond the satisfaction of basic physical needs, the advancement of civilization toward an ever-improving quality of like is likewise dependent upon mans' interaction with his entire environment. This larger system is controlled externally by electromagnetic and particle energy from the sun and internally by the dynamic interchange of energy between the solid earth, oceans, the atmosphere, and the magnetosphere. This exchange of energy that determines the structure of the earth's environemental system is evaluated.

Source record↗
NASA NTRS1986

Theoretical and observational planetary physics

This program supports NASA's deep space exploration missions, particularly those to the outer Solar System, and also NASA's Earth-orbital astronomy missions, using ground-based observations, primarily with the NASA IRTF at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, and also with such instruments as the Kitt Peak 4 meter Mayall telescope and the NRAO VLA facility in Socorro, New Mexico. An important component of the program is the physical interpretation of the observations. There were two major scientific discoveries resulting from 8 micrometer observations of Jupiter. The first is that at that wavelength there are two spots, one near each magnetic pole, which are typically the brightest and therefore warmest places on the planet. The effect is clearly due to precipitating high energy magnetospheric particles. A second ground-based discovery is that in 1985, Jupiter exhibited low latitude (+ or - 18 deg.) stratospheric wave structure.

Caldwell, J.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Plasma Sail Concept Fundamentals

The mini-magnetospheric plasma propulsion (M2P2) device, originally proposed by Winglee et al., predicts that a 15-km standoff distance (or 20-km cross-sectional dimension) of the magnetic bubble will provide for sufficient momentum transfer from the solar wind to accelerate a spacecraft to unprecedented speeds of 50 C80 km/s after an acceleration period of 3 mo. Such velocities will enable travel out of the solar system in period of 7 yr almost an order of magnitude improvement over present chemical-based propulsion systems. However, for the parameters of the simulation of Winglee et al., a fluid model for the interaction of M2P2 with the solar wind is not valid. It is assumed in the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) fluid model, normally applied to planetary magnetospheres, that the characteristic scale size is much greater than the Larmor radius and ion skin depth of the solar wind. In the case of M2P2, the size of the magnetic bubble is actually less than or comparable to the scale of these characteristic parameters. Therefore, a kinetic approach, which addresses the small-scale physical mechanisms, must be used. A two-component approach to determining a preliminary estimate of the momentum transfer to the plasma sail has been adopted. The first component is a self-consistent MHD simulation of the small-scale expansion phase of the magnetic bubble. The fluid treatment is valid to roughly 5 km from the source and the steady-state MHD solution at the 5 km boundary was then used as initial conditions for the hybrid simulation. The hybrid simulations showed that the forces delivered to the innermost regions of the plasma sail are considerably ( 10 times) smaller than the MHD counterpart, are dominated by the magnetic field pressure gradient, and are directed primarily in the transverse direction.

Khazanov, G. V.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Anomalous resistivity and electron heating by lower hybrid drift waves inside reconnecting current sheets

Inside an electron diffusion region of laboratory reconnection experiments, the quasi-electrostatic lower hybrid drift wave (ES-LHDW) is observed when a significant guide field component is present. Through direct measurement of the anomalous drag term and quasilinear analysis, it is shown that ES-LHDW can account for approximately 20% of the mean reconnection electric field in a case with moderate guide field. This value exceeds the contribution from classical resistivity, which is around 10%. The effects of the Lorentz force term, often neglected for electrostatic waves, are crucial for the observed correlation between electric field and density fluctuations. Anomalous electron heating by the perturbed current and resistivity (2.6 MW/m 3 ) also surpasses the classical Ohmic heating, which is about 2.0 MW/m 3 . For the case with a high guide field, significantly higher local electron temperatures were observed during periods of strong ES-LHDW activity. A statistical analysis further supports electron heating by LHDW, showing a larger increase in electron temperature with a high guide field. Finally, data from the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission provide evidence of Landau damping of ES-LHDW, suggesting that ES-LHDW may contribute to the generation of nonthermal electrons along the direction parallel to the magnetic field.

Magnetic reconnection↗
DOE OSTI2016

Simultaneous disappearances of plasmaspheric hiss, exohiss, and chorus waves triggered by a sudden decrease in solar wind dynamic pressure

Magnetospheric whistler mode waves are of great importance in the radiation belt electron dynamics. In this paper, on the basis of the analysis of a rare event with the simultaneous disappearances of whistler mode plasmaspheric hiss, exohiss, and chorus triggered by a sudden decrease in the solar wind dynamic pressure, we provide evidences for the following physical scenarios: (1) nonlinear generation of chorus controlled by the geomagnetic field inhomogeneity, (2) origination of plasmaspheric hiss from chorus, and (3) leakage of plasmaspheric hiss into exohiss. Finally, following the reduction of the solar wind dynamic pressure, the dayside geomagnetic field configuration with the enhanced inhomogeneity became unfavorable for the generation of chorus, and the quenching of chorus directly caused the disappearances of plasmaspheric hiss and then exohiss.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
NASA NTRS2003

Fundamentals of the Plasma Sail Concept: MHD and Kinetic Studies

The Mini-Magnetospheric Plasma Propulsion (M2P2), originally proposed by Winglee et al. [2000] predicts that a 15-km standoff distance (or 20-km cross-sectional dimension) of the magnetic bubble will provide for sufficient momentum transfer from the solar wind to accelerate a spacecraft to the unprecedented speeds of 50-80 km/s after an acceleration period of about three months. Such velocities will enable travel out of the solar system in period of about seven years-almost an order of magnitude improvement over present chemical based propulsion systems. However, for the parameters of the simulation of Winglee et al. [2000], a fluid model for the interaction of M2P2 with the solar wind is not valid. It is assumed in the MHD fluid model, normally applied to planetary magnetospheres, that the characteristic scale-size is much greater than the Larmor radius and ion skin depth of the solar wind. In the case of M2P2, the size of the magnetic bubble is actually less than or, comparable to, the scale of these characteristic parameters. Therefore, a kinetic approach, which addresses the small-scale physical mechanisms, must be used. We have adopted a two-component approach to determining a preliminary estimate of the momentum transfer to the plasma sail. The first component is a self-consistent MHD simulation of the small-scale expansion phase of the magnetic bubble. The fluid treatment is valid to roughly 5 km from the source and the steady-state MHD solution at the 5 km boundary was then used as initial conditions for the hybrid simulation. The hybrid simulations showed that the momentum transfer to the innermost regions of the plasma sail is negligible.

Khazanov, G.↗