Physics
Scientific paper
Feb 1992
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1992jgr....97.1337a&link_type=abstract
Journal of Geophysical Research (ISSN 0148-0227), vol. 97, Feb. 1, 1992, p. 1337-1344.
Physics
25
Auroral Arcs, Magnetic Field Configurations, Magnetoplasmadynamics, Electron Acceleration, Hall Effect, Space Plasmas, Zero Force Curves
Scientific paper
The paper presents a mechanism by which X lines cause auroral arcs. It is suggested that Hall electric fields, which are produced in the plane perpendicular to the X line in order to equalize the flow of electrons and ions through the diffusion region despite their differences in inertia, map along magnetic field lines to the auroral acceleration region at much lower altitudes. A solution of a flow problem, similar to the merging situation, by Sonnerup and Wang (1987) is used to show that the voltage is sufficient for auroral arcs and that momentum transfer between the diffusion and exterior regions is consistent with the production of 'paired electrostatic shocks' for a rigorous solution. An integration along a path through the diffusion region for the general case shows that auroral-sized voltages are expected in both collisional and collisionless cases. It is illustrated that the noninertial scale length is appropriate for the diffusion region in the collisionless case, and maps to the ionosphere as about 10 km.
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