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Title: Nonlinear whistler wave scattering in space plasmas

Conference ·
OSTI ID:484523

In this paper the evolution of nonlinear scattering of whistler mode waves by kinetic Alfven waves (KAW) in time and two spatial dimensions is studied analytically. The authors suggest this nonlinear process as a mechanism of kinetic Alfven wave generation in space plasmas. This mechanism can explain the dependence of Alfven wave generation on whistler waves observed in magnetospheric and ionospheric plasmas. The observational data show a dependence for the generation of long periodic pulsations Pc5 on whistler wave excitation in the auroral and subauroral zone of the magnetosphere. This dependence was first observed by Ondoh T.I. For 79 cases of VLF wave excitation registered by Ondoh at College Observatory (L=64.6 N), 52 of them were followed by Pc5 geomagnetic pulsation generation. Similar results were obtained at the Loparskaia Observatory (L=64 N) for auroral and subauroral zone of the magnetosphere. Thus, in 95% of the cases when VLF wave excitation occurred the generation of long periodic geomagnetic pulsations Pc5 were observed. The observations also show that geomagnetic pulsations Pc5 are excited simultaneously or insignificantly later than VLF waves. In fact these two phenomena are associated genetically: the excitation of VLF waves leads to the generation of geomagnetic pulsations Pc5. The observations show intensive generation of geomagnetic pulsations during thunderstorms. Using an electromagnetic noise monitoring system covering the ULF range (0.01-10 Hz) A.S. Fraser-Smith observed intensive ULF electromagnetic wave during a large thunderstorm near the San-Francisco Bay area on September 23, 1990. According to this data the most significant amplification in ULF wave activity was observed for waves with a frequency of 0.01 Hz and it is entirely possible that stronger enhancements would have been measured at lower frequencies.

Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-36
OSTI ID:
484523
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-97-340; CONF-970724-1; ON: DE97004775; TRN: 97:003833
Resource Relation:
Conference: 23. international conference on phenomena in ionized gases, Toulouse (France), 17-22 Jul 1997; Other Information: PBD: 1997
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English