Journal article
Radial and Local Time Variations in the Thickness of Jupiter's Magnetospheric Current Sheet
Journal of geophysical research. Space physics, Vol.127(10), e2022JA030664
10/2022
DOI: 10.1029/2022JA030664
Abstract
The magnetic field observations from the Galileo, Ulysses, Voyager 1 and 2, and Pioneer 10 and 11 spacecraft are analyzed to understand the structures and thickness of the Jovian magnetospheric current sheet. Using a new technique that can determine the motion of the spacecraft relative to the current sheet, we have built the first global map of the thickness of the Jovian magnetospheric current sheet. We show that the current sheet thickness in Jupiter's magnetosphere is not equal everywhere but changes systematically with both radial distance and local time. The extremely thin dawnside current sheet appears to be linked to the stresses imposed by the solar wind on the open magnetic flux housed in the lobes of the magnetosphere in that sector. We also show evidence of a mostly closed magnetosphere in the dusk sector. We show that the current sheet thickness asymmetries likely arise from a field and plasma convection system set up by the reconnection of the interplanetary magnetic field with that of Jupiter.
Plain Language Summary
The Jovian magnetospheric current sheet located close to the equatorial plane of Jupiter is the main repository of its corotating plasma derived from Io. Using a new technique that can determine the relative motions between the current sheet and the spacecraft that have traversed it, we have developed a detailed map of the current sheet thickness. Surprisingly, the thickness of the current sheet is small in the dawn sector and very large in the dusk sector of the magnetosphere. We show that the current sheet thickness asymmetries likely arise from a field and plasma convection system set up by the reconnection of the interplanetary magnetic field with that of Jupiter.
Key Points
We have developed the first map of the thickness of the Jovian magnetospheric current sheet which shows strong local time asymmetries
The observed thickness asymmetries may arise from the dawn/dusk differences in the interconnectedness of the Jovian field to the interplanetary magnetic field
A new technique was developed that can determine the motion of the spacecraft relative to the instantaneous location of the current sheet
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Radial and Local Time Variations in the Thickness of Jupiter's Magnetospheric Current Sheet
- Creators
- K. K. Khurana - Planetary Science InstituteH. K. LeinweberG. B. Hospodarsky - University of IowaC. P. Paranicas - Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of geophysical research. Space physics, Vol.127(10), e2022JA030664
- DOI
- 10.1029/2022JA030664
- ISSN
- 2169-9380
- eISSN
- 2169-9402
- Number of pages
- 19
- Grant note
- NASA Science Mission Workings (80NSSC19K0540; 80NSSC20K1047)
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 10/2022
- Academic Unit
- Physics and Astronomy
- Record Identifier
- 9984455553602771
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