Physics – Plasma Physics
Scientific paper
Aug 1999
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1999georl..26.2367s&link_type=abstract
Geophysical Research Letters, Volume 26, Issue 15, p. 2367-2370
Physics
Plasma Physics
7
Magnetospheric Physics, Magnetospheric Physics: Auroral Phenomena, Space Plasma Physics: Magnetic Reconnection, Magnetospheric Physics: Magnetotail
Scientific paper
A new mechanism is proposed for predicting and interpreting the motion of auroral arcs observed in the nightside ionosphere during the expansion phase of a sub-storm. This mechanism is centred on the idea that such arcs act as visible manifestations of the arrival of earthward-propagating shock waves in the near-Earth magnetosphere. These shock waves are generated at a near-Earth X-line, and propagate at the local Alfvén speed. Because of the non-uniform nature of the magnetized plasma in the magnetotail, dispersion results in a change in the shape of the wave fronts as the shocks propagate towards the ionosphere. Theoretical analysis shows that a variety of arc motions can occur as a result of this dispersion, depending on factors such as the reconnection rate, the location of the reconnection site, and gradients in the magnetic field strength and plasma density.
Bogdanova Yulia V.
Buchan M. J.
Rijnbeek Richard Philip
Semenov Vladimir S.
No associations
LandOfFree
A new mechanism for interpreting the motion of auroral arcs in the nightside ionosphere 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 A new mechanism for interpreting the motion of auroral arcs in the nightside ionosphere, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and A new mechanism for interpreting the motion of auroral arcs in the nightside ionosphere will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1458728