Physics
Scientific paper
Jul 1993
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1993jatp...55.1289s&link_type=abstract
Journal of Atmospheric and Terrestrial Physics (ISSN 0021-9169), vol. 55, no. 9, p. 1289-1294.
Physics
7
Auroral Spectroscopy, Hydrogen Atoms, Neutral Atoms, Proton Energy, Upper Atmosphere, Charge Exchange, Geomagnetism, Kinetic Energy
Scientific paper
An energetic auroral proton entering the atmosphere will alternate between being a proton and a neutral hydrogen atom by charge-exchange collisions with atmospheric constituents. This study uses a simple procedure to evaluate the energy degradation of the penetrating protons/hydrogen atoms by using semi-empirical range relations in air, and derives the particle energy variation as a function of altitude, starting from proton spectra observed from rockets above the main collision region. The main assumptions are that the geomagnetic field is homogeneous and vertical and that the pitch angle of the proton/hydrogen atom is preserved in collisions with atmospheric constituents before being thermalized. The calculations show that the incoming particle flux first loses the low energy particles at the highest pitch angles, even if the beam itself widens as it penetrates the atmosphere. The largest energy loss for particles with initial energy between 10 and 1000 keV occurs in the height interval between 100 and 125 km.
Deehr Charles S.
Henriksen Kim
Lorentzen Dag A.
Sigernes Fred
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