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Large-Scale Counterstreaming Of H+ And He+ Along Plasmaspheric Flux Tubes, P. G. Richards, Robert W. Schunk, Jan Josef Sojka

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An interhemispheric plasma transport model has been used to study the flow characteristics of H+, He+, and O+ along closed geomagnetic field lines for solstice conditions at noon local time. The calculations were carried out for the flux tube that passes through Millstone Hill. Both symmetric and asymmetric neutral winds in the conjugate ionospheres were considered. Initially, the flux tube content was partially depleted, and the subsequent refilling was studied until a steady state flow was established between the winter and summer hemispheres. The main conclusion to be drawn from this study is that H+-He+ counterstreaming can be expected along …