© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

Daytime Aurora

Jøran Moen

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

Dayside Magnetospheric Boundary Layers

(Siscoe. 1991)

(Newell ann Meng, 1992)

Dayside magnetospheric boundary layers form adjacent to the magnetopause at the inner side. The dayside boyndaries are named Low-latitude boundary layer (largest surface against the solar wind), the cusp (most direct entry for shocked solar wind plasma, and plasma mantle (also called the high latitude boundary layer)

The above figure shows a statistical survey of plasma precipitation regions observed by DMSPsatellites at 850 km altitude. The classification scheme is based electron and ion energy spectra and fluxes in the 32 eV-32 keV energy range.

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

BPS/LLBL/Cusp transitions

Lorentzen and Moen, JGR, 2000

The MSP observations from Longyearbyen ion the rights, shows a transition from green-dominated aurora (577.7 nm) to red-dominated (630.0 nm). The red-dominted is identified as of BPS source (several keV electrons on closed field lines) and the red-dominated as of cusp source (~100 eV electrons on open field lines.

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

FAST satellite intersection of Cusp aurora

• To come

Oksavik et al., accepted by Ann. Geophys., 2003

Notice the staircase stepped ion cuso, low energy electrons, field aligned currents signatures (magnetic

field deflections) and E-field irregularities in the cusp.

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

Solar wind driven ionospheric convection

Magnetic flux opened by magentopause reconnection convects across the polar cap, followed by tail reconnection and sunward return flow.

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

Signatures of pulsed magnetopause recoonnection. Notice the equatorward steps and the poleward moving

forms.

5-10 min recurrence time

IMF Bz south

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

IMF By asymmetry on the movement of newly reconnected magnetic flux.

The thick arrows indicate the magnetic tension for j x B which act to unbend the curved magnetic field lines

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

IMF controlled convection patterns

Reiff and Burch, JGR, 1985

Notice the IMF By controlled east-west shift in the cusp inflow region during IMF Bz south conditions in favour of magnetopause reconnection.

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

BY

BX

BZ

Moen et al., GRL, 1999

IMF-By controlled CUSP reconfigurationThe image sequence demonstrates the auroral response to an an IMF By polarity change from negative to positive. The polarity change was associated with a transition from westward moving to eastward moving auroral events, consistent with magnetopause reconnection and the magetic tension force. The time lag from IMF to the ionospheric response was around 15-20 minutes.

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

30 keV electron trapping boundary

NOAA-12

Moving auroral form

X-line expansion into the 17 MLT sector

© Research Section for Plasma and Space Physics

UNIVERSITY OF OSLO

Arc crosing

Arc crossing