Physics – Plasma Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2010
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010agufmsh51d1710l&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2010, abstract #SH51D-1710
Physics
Plasma Physics
[2129] Interplanetary Physics / Interplanetary Dust, [2134] Interplanetary Physics / Interplanetary Magnetic Fields, [7839] Space Plasma Physics / Nonlinear Phenomena, [7849] Space Plasma Physics / Plasma Interactions With Dust And Aerosols
Scientific paper
Interplanetary Field Enhancements (IFEs) appear as smoothly varying cusp-shaped enhancements in the interplanetary magnetic field with a strong central current sheet and last minutes to many hours. These non-linear disturbances with field changes much larger than the ambient interplanetary field are seen throughout the inner solar system from 0.3AU to 5AU at a rate of close to one per month, a rate that is dependent on the size of the event. Multi-spacecraft observations show that these enhancements travel at the solar wind velocity, consistent with their lack of accompanying shocks. IFEs were attributed to dust released by asteroids and comets because of their appearance in association with conjunctions with asteroid 2201 Oljato and comet De Vico. However, this explanation did not by itself explain the sudden appearance of these events. Further evidence of their origin comes from the STEREO and WIND plasma data. Electron measurements always show changes in density and temperature during the IFE events, while the proton data show at most weak changes. In order to satisfy quasi-neutrality condition, a third constituent must be present in the plasma, which we believe is charged dust. Considering the large velocity gained by these particles, they must be very small perhaps a few nanometers in diameter. To produce the observed macroscale disturbances, there must be vast numbers of nanoscale charged dust produced in a short time in a small volume of space. Meteoroid collisions can provide this rapid localized production of dust which will rapidly be ionized in sunlight. Comparison between IFE occurrence rate and the calculated meteoroid collision rate enables a size to be attributed to these meteoroids.
Delzanno Giorgio
Lai Hsin-Hua
Luhmann Janet G.
Opitz Andrea
Russell Christopher T.
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