Orgins of enhanced field-aligned current at the edge of an auroral arc

Technical Report · Fri Sep 01 04:00:00 EDT 1989

OSTI ID:7243953

Greenspan, M E

Rocket and radar observations of auroral arcs indicate that the upward field-aligned currents associated with such arcs sometimes are larger at their edges than within the arcs. One set of observations was made by instruments on the Porcupine F4 rocket. Porcupine F4 measured a fourfold increase in the magnitude of the upward field-aligned current at the edge of an auroral arc over its value in the arc's center, while the energy of the peak in the electron differential flux decreased at the edge of the arc and the electron distribution function remained nearly isotropic in pitch angle throughout the arc. One mechanism which has been proposed to explain the creation of auroral arcs is the adiabatic acceleration of magnetospheric electrons through a field-aligned electrostatic potential. The upward field-aligned current which results is a function of density and parallel and perpendicular temperatures of the magnetospheric electron population as well as the magnitude and altitude of the electrostatic potential drop. If the arc traversed by Porcupine F4 was created in this way, the increase in upward current at the edge of the arc cannot be explained solely by an increase in the altitude of the top of the field-aligned potential drop. Rather, an increase in the density, a decrease in the perpendicular temperature of the magnetospheric electron population at the edge of the arc, or both are needed to explain the observed increase in upward field-aligned current.

• Research Organization: Regis Coll., Weston, MA (USA). Research Center
• OSTI ID: 7243953
• Report Number(s): AD-A-215311/2/XAB; SCIENTIFIC--6
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640201* -- Atmospheric Physics-- Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magetospheric Phenomena
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ACCELERATION
ADIABATIC PROCESSES
ALIGNMENT
AURORAE
CURRENTS
DISTRIBUTION FUNCTIONS
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
EARTH MAGNETOSPHERE
ELECTRIC CURRENTS
ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS
ELECTROSTATICS
FUNCTIONS
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
RADAR
RANGE FINDERS
ROCKETS