Magnetic-Field Strength and Electron Density Measured in the Earth's Plasmasphere by the WHISPER Relaxation Sounder Onboard CLUSTER

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics

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7500 Solar Physics, Astrophysics, And Astronomy

Scientific paper

The WHISPER relaxation sounder that is onboard the four CLUSTER spacecraft has for main scientific objectives to monitor the natural waves in the 2 kHz 80 kHz frequency range and mostly to determine the total plasma density from the solar wind down to the Earth's plasmasphere. To fulfil these objectives, WHISPER uses the two long double sphere antennae of the Electric Field and Wave experiment as transmitting and receiving sensors. In its active working mode WHISPER works according to principles that have been worked out for topside sounding. A radio wave transmitter sends a wave train during a very short time period, 1 or 0.5 ms, covering a frequency band of 1 or 2 kHz. Then, a receiver listens to the surrounding plasma response a few milliseconds after. Strong and long lasting echoes are usually received whenever the transmitting frequencies coincide with characteristic plasma frequencies. Provided that these echoes, also called resonances, may be identified, the WHISPER relaxation sounder becomes a reliable and powerful tool for plasma diagnosis. When the transmitter is off, WHISPER behaves like a passive receiver, allowing natural waves to be monitored. The paper aims mainly at the resonance recognition process and interpretation inside the Earth's plasmasphere. Several types of resonances are usually seen in this region, they allow the magnetic field strength, the total electron density and sometimes the hot-to-cold electron density ratio to be determined.

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