Physics
Scientific paper
Feb 1991
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1991jgr....96.1633e&link_type=abstract
Journal of Geophysical Research (ISSN 0148-0227), vol. 96, Feb. 1, 1991, p. 1633-1645.
Physics
65
Ionospheric Drift, Ionospheric Propagation, Magnetosphere-Ionosphere Coupling, Electric Field Strength, Geomagnetism, Plasma Drift
Scientific paper
It is found that the Harang discontinuity results from a dawn/dusk asymmetry in total energetic plasma content across the nightside of the magnetosphere. This effect, referred to as the dawnside depletion effect, is discussed in detail. The basic physical assumptions usually regarded as appropriate for the description of the closed field line plasma sheet are outlined and a quantitative, bounce-averaged description of the particle drifts is presented. A simplified, illustrative model is given of the magnetospheric geometry and convection electric field in order to demonstrate the dawnside depletion effect and examine its ionospheric and magnetospheric implications. For a quantitative examination of the implications of the dawnside depletion effect and the resulting ionospheric electric field structure, the Rice convection model Z(RCM) is used. A brief description is provided of the RCM, the specific run setups, and the RCM results. A general discussion of the basic physical connection between cross-tail gradients in plasma contents and the Harang discontinuity is presented.
Erickson Gary M.
Spiro Robert W.
Wolf Richard A.
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