Plasma electron signature of magnetic connection to the earth's bow shock: ISEE 3

Journal Article · Mon Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1982 · J. Geophys. Res.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/JA087iA02p00632· OSTI ID:5507493

Feldman, W C; Anderson, R C; Asbridge, J R; Bame, S J; Gosling, J T; Zwickl, R D

Enhanced fluxes of low-energy electrons backstreaming from the earth's bow shock have been identified at ISEE 3. When present, these fluxes modify ambient solar wind electron velocity distributions f(v) in characteristic ways that depends on whether ISEE 3 is near the edge, or within the interior of the earth's electron foreshock. Near the edge, energy peaks in f(v) are observed. Such distributions should be locally unstable to electron plasma oscillations. Well within the interior of the foreshock, enhanced fluxes of electrons with energies up to the maximum detected by the Los Alamos electron analyzer (approx.1 keV) are observed over the full backward hemisphere. These electrons can be modelled with an asymptotic power law distribution having index in the range 4< or approx. =p/sub b/s< or approx. =6. At intermediate energies (approx.20--50 eV), twin angular peaks are observed centered on the magnetic field direction B. Also observed at these times are depressions in f(v) at energies less than approx.20 eV that are centered on B. Such distributions having a perpendicular temperature greater than their parallel temperature may be locally unstable to the generation of whistler waves. Analysis of a particularly clean example of connection to the bow shock is consistent with the possiblility that the observed electron fluxes emerge from the forward foot of the electron heating region within bow shock where the electron density and temperature are larger than that of the uperturbed upstream solar wind by a factor of approx.1.2. This analysis also indicates that the electrostatic potential within the forward foot of the shock is between approx.5 and 50 V more positive than that within plasma far upstream at ISEE 3. However, these interpretations depend on the assumption of nearly scatter-free propagation, which may not hold.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545
• OSTI ID: 5507493
• Journal Information: J. Geophys. Res.; (United States), Journal Name: J. Geophys. Res.; (United States) Vol. 87:A2; ISSN JGREA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640107* -- Astrophysics &amp; Cosmology-- Planetary Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ACCELERATION
BACKSCATTERING
CHARGED-PARTICLE TRANSPORT
DISTRIBUTION FUNCTIONS
ELECTRON DENSITY
ELECTRON TEMPERATURE
ELECTRONS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
FERMIONS
FUNCTIONS
INTERPLANETARY MAGNETIC FIELDS
INTERPLANETARY SPACE
LEPTONS
MAGNETIC FIELDS
PLASMA ACCELERATION
RADIATION TRANSPORT
RADIATIONS
SCATTERING
SHOCK WAVES
SOLAR ELECTRONS
SOLAR PARTICLES
SOLAR RADIATION
SPACE
STELLAR RADIATION