Estimating local plasma sheet PV5/3 from single-spacecraft measurements

Details Estimating local plasma sheet PV5/3 from single-spacecraft measurements Estimating local plasma sheet PV5/3 from single-spacecraft measurements

Dec 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006jgra..11112218w&link_type=abstract

Journal of Geophysical Research, Volume 111, Issue A12, CiteID A12218

Physics

30

Magnetospheric Physics: Magnetospheric Configuration And Dynamics, Magnetospheric Physics: Magnetotail, Magnetospheric Physics: Plasma Sheet, Magnetospheric Physics: Substorms

Scientific paper

The theory of plasma transport in Earth's plasma sheet depends critically on the entropy parameter PV 5/3, where P is particle pressure and V is the volume of a closed flux tube containing one unit of magnetic flux. Theory suggests that earthward moving flow bursts that inject plasma into the inner magnetosphere consist of flux tubes that have PV 5/3 values that are lower than those of neighboring slow-moving flux tubes. However, there is no way to measure flux tube volume from one spacecraft or a small number of spacecraft. We propose a formula for estimating local PV 5/3 from a single spacecraft in the plasma sheet based on a simple two-dimensional analytic model of plasma in force equilibrium, with some parameters set from local measurements at a spacecraft and other parameters set to fit a series of equilibrated Tsyganenko models. To gain an idea of the expected error, the resulting formula is then tested against various relaxed Tsyganenko models, an equilibrium magnetic field/plasma model with a depleted channel and also a thin-filament MHD calculation. The formula is used to estimate the entropy parameter of flux tubes injected in two substorms, using spacecraft measurements near X = -10 RE in the central plasma sheet.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

Estimating local plasma sheet PV5/3 from single-spacecraft measurements 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 Estimating local plasma sheet PV5/3 from single-spacecraft measurements, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Estimating local plasma sheet PV5/3 from single-spacecraft measurements will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1547014