Journal article
Extreme ionospheric ion energization and electron heating in Alfvén waves in the storm time inner magnetosphere
Geophysical research letters, Vol.42(24), pp.10,531-10,540
12/28/2015
DOI: 10.1002/2015GL066674
Abstract
We report measurements of energized outflowing/bouncing ionospheric ions and heated electrons in the inner magnetosphere during a geomagnetic storm. The ions arrive in the equatorial plane with pitch angles that increase with energy over a range from tens of eV to > 50 keV while the electrons are field aligned up to ~1 keV. These particle distributions are observed during intervals of broadband low‐frequency electromagnetic field fluctuations consistent with a Doppler‐shifted spectrum of kinetic Alfvén waves and kinetic field line resonances. The fluctuations extend from L ≈ 3 out to the apogee of the Van Allen Probes spacecraft at L ≈ 6.5. They thereby span most of the L shell range occupied by the ring current. These measurements suggest a model for ionospheric ion outflow and energization driven by dispersive Alfvén waves that may account for the large storm time contribution of ionospheric ions to magnetospheric energy density.
Key Points
Dispersive Alfven waves may pump up ion energy density in the inner magnetosphere
Dispersive Alfven waves accelerate ionospheric ions in the inner magnetosphere
Dispersive Alfven waves drive field‐aligned electron heating/acceleration in the inner magnetosphere
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Extreme ionospheric ion energization and electron heating in Alfvén waves in the storm time inner magnetosphere
- Creators
- C. C Chaston - University of California, BerkeleyJ. W Bonnell - University of California, BerkeleyJ. R Wygant - University of MinnesotaC. A Kletzing - University of IowaG. D Reeves - Los Alamos National LaboratoryA Gerrard - New Jersey Institute of TechnologyL Lanzerotti - New Jersey Institute of TechnologyC. W Smith - University of New Hampshire
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Geophysical research letters, Vol.42(24), pp.10,531-10,540
- DOI
- 10.1002/2015GL066674
- ISSN
- 0094-8276
- eISSN
- 1944-8007
- Number of pages
- 10
- Grant note
- JHU/APL (921647) RBSP‐ECT JHU/APL (967399) NASA (NNX11AD78G; NNX15AF57G; NAS5‐01072) RBSP‐RBSPICE JHU/APL (937836)
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 12/28/2015
- Academic Unit
- Physics and Astronomy
- Record Identifier
- 9984199704902771
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