Multi-point observations of density structures in the polar cap

Physics

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

2475 Polar Cap Ionosphere, 2772 Plasma Waves And Instabilities, 2776 Polar Cap Phenomena, 2794 Instruments And Techniques

Scientific paper

We investigate properties of plasma density irregularities in the polar cap at a radial distance of 5 Earth radii. Our analysis is primarily based on multi-point observations of auroral hiss. We analyze high resolution data of the wave instruments on board the four Cluster spacecraft. The local electron density is estimated, obtaining values close to 1 particle per cc, with density depletions decreasing down to one tenth of the density of the surrounding polar cap plasma. Combined analysis in different points in space gives us the orientation of the normal direction to these structures, the velocity of their drift, their size, and lifetime. We show that the density structures move at speeds of a few km/s. The corresponding convection electric field in the polar cap is then approximately 1 mV/m, consistent with the values expected based on previous observations by different methods. If we map the transverse dimension of the density depletions to the ionospheric heights, we obtain values of the order of a few tens of km. Their lifetime is often longer than tens of seconds.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Multi-point observations of density structures in the polar cap 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 Multi-point observations of density structures in the polar cap, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Multi-point observations of density structures in the polar cap will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1464849

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.