Plasma irregularities caused by cycloid bunching of the CRRES G-2 barium release

Journal Article · Mon Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 1993 · Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/92JA00987· OSTI ID:6820710

Bernhardt, P A; Huba, J D ^[1]; Pongratz, M B; Simons, D J; Wolcott, J H ^[2]

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1. Naval Research Lab., Washington, DC (United States)
2. Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)

The Combined Release and Radiation Effects Satellite (CRRES) spacecraft carried a number of barium thermite canisters for release into the upper atmosphere. The barium release labeled G-2 showed evidence of curved irregularities not aligned with the ambient magnetic field B. The newly discovered curved structures can be explained by a process called cycloid bunching. Cyclold bunching occurs when plasma is created by photoionization of a neutral cloud injected at high velocity perpendicular to B. If the injection velocity is much larger than the expansion speed of the cloud, the ion trail will form a cycloid that has irregularities spaced by the product of the perpendicular injection speed and the ion gyroperiod. Images of the solar-illuminated barium ions are compared with the results of a three-dimensional kinetic simulation. Cycloid bunching is shown to be responsible for the rapid generation of both curved and field-aligned irregularities in the CRRES G-2 experiment. 47 refs., 14 figs., 2 tabs.

• OSTI ID: 6820710
• Journal Information: Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States), Vol. 98:A2; ISSN 0148-0227
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
BARIUM
PHOTOIONIZATION
BARIUM IONS
DISTURBANCES
SIMULATION
PLASMA
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
EXPANSION
INJECTION
SATELLITES
VELOCITY
ALKALINE EARTH METALS
CHARGED PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
INTAKE
IONIZATION
IONS
METALS
661320* - Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magnetospheric Phenomena- (1992-)