Undulations on the Equatorial Edge of the Auroral Oval

Physics

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

2704 Auroral Phenomena (2407), 2721 Field-Aligned Currents And Current Systems (2409), 2730 Magnetosphere: Inner, 2772 Plasma Waves And Instabilities (2471)

Scientific paper

We present 5 events with observation of the evolution of large scale auroral undulations imaged by IMAGE FUV. Auroral undulations are large scale wave structures seen at the equatorial edge of the auroral oval during enhanced geomagnetic activity. They develop close to, or during the maximum of strength of the ring current. As the auroral undulations propagate westward along the duskside, their amplitude is growing. When they enter the plasmasphere further west, the auroral undulations are seen to reduce in amplitude, and vanish. DMSP F13 data shows velocity shears in the plasma close to the crest of the undulations, where the velocity shears are due to the establishment of SAPS channels. Observations of the precipitating energetic ion flux show an excellent latitudinal overlap with the location and extent of the auroral undulation. We suggest that the large scale auroral undulations are a consequence of the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, and that energetic ions constitute the plasma population that is modulated.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Undulations on the Equatorial Edge of the Auroral Oval does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Undulations on the Equatorial Edge of the Auroral Oval, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Undulations on the Equatorial Edge of the Auroral Oval will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1094891

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.