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Astrophysics and Astronomy

2004

Space plasma physics

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Cluster Observations Of Magnetic Field Fluctuations In The High-Altitude Cusp, K. Nykyri, P. J. Cargill, E. Lucek, T. Horbury, B. Lavraud, A. Balogh, M. W. Dunlop, Et Al. Jul 2004

Cluster Observations Of Magnetic Field Fluctuations In The High-Altitude Cusp, K. Nykyri, P. J. Cargill, E. Lucek, T. Horbury, B. Lavraud, A. Balogh, M. W. Dunlop, Et Al.

Publications

High-resolution (22 vector/s) magnetic field data from Cluster FGM instrument are presented for the highaltitude cusp crossing on 17 March 2001. Despite the quiet solar wind conditions, the cusp was filled with magnetic field turbulence for much of the crossing. Large-scale fluctuations show some correlation between spacecraft but the higher frequency fluctuations show no correlation, indicating that the length scales of these waves are smaller than the spacecraft separation (500 km). In many intervals, there are clear peaks in the wave power around the ion cyclotron frequency (~1 Hz), and there is some evidence for waves at the first harmonic …


Cluster Encounters With The High Altitude Cusp: Boundary Structure And Magnetic Field Depletions, P. J. Cargill, M. W. Dunlop, B. Lavraud, R. C. Elphic, D. L. Holland, K. Nykyri, A. Balogh, I. Dandouras Apr 2004

Cluster Encounters With The High Altitude Cusp: Boundary Structure And Magnetic Field Depletions, P. J. Cargill, M. W. Dunlop, B. Lavraud, R. C. Elphic, D. L. Holland, K. Nykyri, A. Balogh, I. Dandouras

Publications

Data from the four spacecraft Cluster mission during a high altitude cusp crossing on 13 February 2001 are presented. The spacecraft configuration has one leading spacecraft, with the three trailing spacecraft lying in a plane that corresponds roughly to the nominal magnetopause surface. The typical spacecraft separation is approximately 600 km. The encounter occurs under conditions of strong and steady southward Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF). The cusp is identified as a seven-minute long depression in the magnetic field, associated with ion heating and a high abundance of He+. Cusp entry involves passage through a magnetopause boundary that has undergone very …


Influence Of The Hall Term On Kh Instability And Reconnection Inside Kh Vortices, K. Nykyri, A. Otto Feb 2004

Influence Of The Hall Term On Kh Instability And Reconnection Inside Kh Vortices, K. Nykyri, A. Otto

Publications

The Kelvin-Helmholtz instability (KHI) in its nonlinear stage can develop small-scale filamentary field and current structures at the flank boundaries of the magnetosphere. It has been shown previously with MHD simulations that magnetic reconnection can occur inside these narrow current layers, resulting in plasma transport from the solar wind into the magnetosphere. During periods of northward IMF, this transport is sufficient to generate a cold, dense plasma sheet on time scales consistent with satellite observations. However, when the length scales of these narrow current layers approach the ion inertia scale, the MHD approximation is not valid anymore and the Hall …