Dipolarization fronts in the magnetotail plasma sheet

被引：80

作者：

Runov, A. ^{[1
]}

Angelopoulos, V. ^{[1
]}

Sitnov, M. ^{[2
]}

Sergeev, V. A. ^{[3
]}

Nakamura, R. ^{[4
]}

Nishimura, Y. ^{[5
,6
]}

Frey, H. U. ^{[7
]}

McFadden, J. P. ^{[7
]}

Larson, D. ^{[7
]}

Bonnell, J. ^{[7
]}

Glassmeier, K-H ^{[8
]}

Auster, U. ^{[8
]}

Connors, M. ^{[1
,10
]}

Russell, C. T. ^{[1
]}

Singer, H. J. ^{[9
]}

机构：

[1] Univ Calif Los Angeles, Inst Geophys & Planetary Phys, Los Angeles, CA 90024 USA

[2] Johns Hopkins Univ, Appl Phys Lab, Laurel, MD USA

[3] St Petersburg State Univ, St Petersburg, Russia

[4] Austrian Acad Sci, Space Res Inst, A-8010 Graz, Austria

[5] Univ Calif Los Angeles, Dept Atmospher & Ocean Sci, Los Angeles, CA USA

[6] Nagoya Univ, Solar Terr Environm Lab, Nagoya, Aichi 4648601, Japan

[7] Univ Calif Berkeley, Space Sci Lab, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA

[8] Tech Univ Carolo Wilhelmina Braunschweig, Inst Geophys & Extraterr Phys, Braunschweig, Germany

[9] NOAA, Space Weather Predict Ctr, Boulder, CO USA

[10] Athabasca Univ, Edmonton, AB, Canada

来源：

PLANETARY AND SPACE SCIENCE | 2011年 / 59卷 / 07期

基金：

美国国家科学基金会;

关键词：

Planetary magnetosphere; Plasma sheet; Reconnection; EARTHWARD FLOW BURSTS; MAGNETOSPHERIC SUBSTORMS; THEMIS; CLUSTER; MAGNETOMETER; INSTRUMENT; SPACECRAFT; SATELLITE; BUBBLES; ARRAY;

D O I：

10.1016/j.pss.2010.06.006

中图分类号：

P1 [天文学];

学科分类号：

0704 ;

摘要：

We present a THEMIS study of a dipolarization front associated with a bursty bulk flow (BBF) that was observed in the central plasma sheet sequentially at X= -20.1, -16.7, and -11.0R(E). Simultaneously, the THEMIS ground network observed the formation of a north-south auroral form and intensification of westward auroral zone currents. Timing of the signatures in space suggests earthward propagation of the front at a velocity of 300 km/s. Spatial profiles of current and electron density on the front reveal a spatial scale of 500 km, comparable to an ion inertial length and an ion thermal gyroradius. This kinetic-scale structure traveled a macroscale distance of 10R(E) in about 4 min without loss of coherence. The dipolarization front, therefore, is an example of space plasma cross-scale coupling. THEMIS observations at different geocentric distances are similar to recent particle-in-cell simulations demonstrating the appearance of dipolarization fronts on the leading edge of plasma fast flows in the vicinity of a reconnection site. Dipolarization fronts, therefore, may be interpreted as remote signatures of transient reconnection. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

引用

页码：517 / 525

页数：9

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