L. M. Zelenyi

Thin current sheet embedded within a thicker plasma sheet: Self‐consistent kinetic theory

A self-consistent theory of thin current sheets, where the magnetic field line tension is balanced by the ion inertia rather than by the pressure gradient, is presented. Assuming that ions are the main current carriers and their dynamics is quasi-adiabatic, the Maxwell-Vlasov equations are reduced to the nonlocal analogue of the Grad-Shafranov equation using a new set of integrals of motion, namely, the particle energy and the sheet invariant of the quasi-adiabatic motion. It is shown that for a drifting Maxwellian distribution of ions outside the sheet the equilibrium equation can be reduced in the limits of strong and weak anisotropy to universal equations that determine families of equilibria with similar profiles of the magnetic field. In the region Bn/B0 < vT/vD ≪ 1 (B0, Bn, vD, and vT are the magnetic fields outside the sheet and close to its central plane, the ion drift velocity outside the sheet, and the ion thermal velocity, respectively) the thickness of such similar profiles is of the order of (vT/vD)1/3 ρ0, where ρ0 is the thermal ion gyroradius outside the sheet. In the limit of weak anisotropy (vT/vD ≫ 1) the self-consistent current sheet equilibrium may also exist with no indications of the catastrophe reported earlier by Burkhart et al. [1992a]. On the contrary, it is found that in this limit the magnetic field profiles again become similar to each other with the characteristic thickness ∼ ρ0. The profiles of plasma and current densities as well as the components of the pressure tensor are calculated for arbitrary ion anisotropy outside the sheet. It is shown that the thin current sheet for the equilibrium considered here is usually embedded into a much thicker plasma sheet. Moreover, in the case of weak anisotropy the perturbation of the plasma density inside the sheet is shown to be proportional to the parameter vD/vT, and as a result the electrostatic effects should be small, consistent with observations. This model of the thin current sheet satisfies the basic force balance equations including the marginal fire-hose condition and preserves the nonguiding center effects including the pressure nongyrotropy.

Solar and Heliospheric Phenomena in October-November 2003: Causes and Effects

We present new observational data on the phenomena of extremely high activity on the Sun and in the heliosphere that took place in October–November 2003. A large variety of solar and heliospheric parameters give evidence that the interval under consideration is unique over the entire observation time. Based on these data, comparing them with similar situations in the past and using available theoretical concepts, we discuss possible cause-and-effect connections between the processes observed. The paper includes the first results and conclusions derived by the collaboration “Solar Extreme Events-2003” organized in Russia for detailed investigations of these events. As a result of our consideration, it is beyond question that the physical causes of solar and heliospheric phenomena in October–November 2003 are not exclusively local and do not belong only to the active regions and solar atmosphere above them. The energy reservoirs and driving forces of these processes have a more global nature. In general, they are hidden from an observer, since ultimately their sources lie in the subphotospheric layers of the Sun, where changes that are fast and difficult to predict can sometimes take place (and indeed they do). Solar flares can serve as sufficiently good tracers of these sudden changes and reconstructions on the Sun, although one can still find other diagnostic indicators among the parameters of magnetic fields, motions of matter, and emission characteristics.

Thin current sheets in collisionless plasma: Equilibrium structure, plasma instabilities, and particle acceleration

The review is devoted to plasma structures with an extremely small transverse size, namely, thin current sheets that have been discovered and investigated by spacecraft observations in the Earth’s magnetotail in the last few decades. The formation of current sheets is attributed to complicated dynamic processes occurring in a collisionless space plasma during geomagnetic perturbations and near the magnetic reconnection regions. The models that describe thin current structures in the Earth’s magnetotail are reviewed. They are based on the assumption of the quasi-adiabatic ion dynamics in a relatively weak magnetic field of the magnetotail neutral sheet, where the ions can become unmagnetized. It is shown that the ion distribution can be represented as a function of the integrals of particle motion—the total energy and quasi-adiabatic invariant. Various modifications of the initial equilibrium are considered that are obtained with allowance for the currents of magnetized electrons, the contribution of oxygen ions, the asymmetry of plasma sources, and the effects related to the non-Maxwellian particle distributions. The theoretical results are compared with the observational data from the Cluster spacecraft mission. Various plasma instabilities developing in thin current sheets are investigated. The evolution of the tearing mode is analyzed, and the parameter range in which the mode can grow are determined. The paradox of complete stabilization of the tearing mode in current sheets with a nonzero normal magnetic field component is thereby resolved based on the quasi-adiabatic model. It is shown that, over a wide range of current sheet parameters and the propagation directions of large-scale unstable waves, various modified drift instabilities—kink and sausage modes—can develop in the system. Based on the concept of a turbulent electromagnetic field excited as a result of the development and saturation of unstable waves, a mechanism for charged particle acceleration in turbulent current sheets is proposed and the energy spectra of the accelerated particles are obtained.

Two spacecraft observations of a reconnection pulse during an auroral breakup

At 1130 UT on November 28, 1995, two spacecraft, Interball-Tail and Geotail, were in a favorable position to study the plasma sheet activity and an auroral breakup observed on the ground near the spacecraft ionospheric footpoints. Both spacecraft were near the neutral sheet, and they were nearly aligned along the magnetic meridian. During the auroral breakup observed at the equatorward half of the auroral oval (also registered as an AKR burst at Interball) both spacecraft simultaneously detected signatures of a reconnection pulse: The earthward plasma streaming and magnetic field dipolarization were observed at 12 R E at Interball, while the tailward energetic ion beam, then the tailward flow and the passage of a plasmoid were observed at 28 R E at Geotail. This pulse seem to proceed inside of the plasma sheet closed field lines, in the region of small (∼ 1nT) background magnetic field at the neutral sheet. At Interball position the onset of fast earthward ion flow, likely initiated by the reconnection pulse, was followed by other manifestations (dipolarization, enhancements of the magnetic turbulence and the energetic particle flux, the intensification of field-aligned currents). Auroral observations showed initial brightening delayed an approximately 1 min after the commencement of the reconnection pulse. The auroral intensification was not accompanied by a significant magnetic disturbance on the ground, and therefore the event can be classified as the pseudobreakup. We estimate magnetic flux transport characteristics and possible location of the onset region in the plasma sheet. We conclude that observations during this event are consistent with the initiation of an auroral breakup by some disturbance (e.g., Alfven wave) generated by the reconnection pulse that commenced in the neutral sheet at ∼15 R E distance.

Magnetic storms in October 2003

Preliminary results of an analysis of satellite and ground-based measurements during extremely strong magnetic storms at the end of October 2003 are presented, including some numerical modeling. The geosynchronous satellites Ekspress-A2and Ekspress-A3, and the low-altitude polar satellites Coronas-F and Meteor-3M carried out measurements of charged particles (electrons, protons, and ions) of solar and magnetospheric origin in a wide energy range. Disturbances of the geomagnetic field caused by extremely high activity on the Sun were studied at more than twenty magnetic stations from Lovozero (Murmansk region) to Tixie (Sakha-Yakutia). Unique data on the dynamics of the ionosphere, riometric absorption, geomagnetic pulsations, and aurora observations at mid-latitudes are obtained.

Effect of magnetic turbulence on the ion dynamics in the distant magnetotail

The ion dynamics in the distant Earths magnetotail is studied in the case that a cross tail electric field E0 and reconnection-driven magnetic turbulence are present in the neutral sheet. The magnetic turbulence observed by the Geotail spacecraft is modeled numerically by a power law magnetic fluctuation spectrum. The magnetic fluctuations have the tearing mode parity with respect to the neutral sheet and are superimposed on a modified Harris sheet. A test particle simulation is performed for the ions, and the particle density, current density, bulk velocity, temperature, pressure, and heat flux are obtained for every point in the distant tail and as a function of the magnetic fluctuation level, δB/B0. It appears that the magnetic turbulence is very effective in maintaining the stationary structure of the current sheet and in changing the ion acceleration due to the electric field to thermal motion. Also, magnetic turbulence can inflate the current carrying region up to a thick current sheet, in contrast with the often assumed thin current sheet. The values obtained for the ion temperature are consistent with those observed in the distant tail by the Geotail spacecraft. The main results are the following: (1) the thickness of the current sheet increases with the level of fluctuations. The thickness λ corresponding to the average magnetic field current profile is obtained for δB/B0 ≃ 0.3. (2) The magnetic pressure outside the current sheet is balanced by particle pressure for δB/B0 ≃ 0.3. This is obtained mostly by an increase in the temperature, while the density profile is not much peaked in the neutral sheet. (3) For low fluctuation levels, heating is anisotropic, most heating going into the y direction; increasing δB/B0 and making reference to the local magnetic field, more heating goes in the parallel rather than in the perpendicular direction, in agreement with part of the observations. (4) A possible splitting of the bulk velocity and of the current density in two sheets is obtained for δB/B0 ≥ 0.2. In general, a relevant level of magnetic turbulence, like δB/B0 ≃ 0.3, appears to be a basic ingredient of the distant magnetotail equilibrium structure.

High energy jets in the Earth’s magnetosheath: Implications for plasma dynamics and anomalous transport

High energy density jets in the magnetosheath near the Earth magnetopause were observed by Interball-1 [1]. In this paper, we continue the investigation of this important physical phenomenon. New data provided by Cluster show that the magnetosheath kinetic energy density during more than one hour exhibits an average level and a series of peaks far exceeding the kinetic energy density in the undisturbed solar wind. This is a surprising finding because the kinetic energy of the upstream solar wind in equilibrium should be significantly diminished downstream in the magnetosheath due to plasma braking and thermalization at the bow shock. We suggest resolving the energy conservation problem by the fact that the nonequilibrium jets appear to be locally superimposed on the background equilibrium magnetosheath, and, thus, the energy balance should be settled globally on the spatial scales of the entire dayside magnetosheath. We show that both the Cluster and Interball jets are accompanied by plasma superdiffusion and suggest that they are important for the energy dissipation and plasma transport. The character of the jet-related turbulence strongly differs from that of known standard cascade models. We infer that these jets may represent the phenomenon of the general physical occurrence observed in other natural systems, such as heliosphere, astrophysical, and fusion plasmas [2–10].

Substorm‐associated pressure variations in the magnetotail plasma sheet and lobe

Simultaneous pressure measurements by Interball-Tail in the high-latitude lobe and by Geotail in the equatorial plasma sheet were analyzed for 30 substorms which exhibited significant pressure changes. At the onset of a few substorms we observed equatorial pressure peaks with magnitudes up to 50% higher than those in the lobe. These pileups are probably rather localized, and their properties are consistent with plasma sheet thickening between two active regions in the tail. During expansion and recovery phases of more than half of substorms, we observed equatorial pressure depletions relative to the high-latitude lobe pressure. These depletions can last more than 2 hours and are likely formed during the substorm expansion phase near the equatorial plane behind (tailward of) the strongly dipolar near-Earth magnetotail region. The observed pressure gradient is probably a nonstationary feature and can be compensated partially by magnetic tension on the curved field lines. Magnitude and history of the solar wind dynamic pressure appear to significantly influence substorm scenarios in the magnetotail. Possible existence of the pressure difference should be taken into account in single-spacecraft substorm studies.

Ion sources and acceleration mechanisms inferred from local distribution functions

This study investigates the sources of the ions making up the complex and nonisotropic H + velocity distribution functions observed by the Geotail spacecraft on May 23, 1995, in the near-Earth magnetotail region and recently reported by Frank et al. [1996]. A distribution function observed by Geotail at ∼10 R E downtail is used as input for the large scale kinetic (LSK) technique to follow the trajectories of approximately 90,000 H + ions backward in time. Time-dependent magnetic and electric fields are taken from a global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation of the magnetosphere and its interactions with appropriate solar wind and IMF conditions. The ion population described by the Geotail distribution function was found to consist of a mixture of particles originating from three distinct sources: the ionosphere, the low latitude boundary layer (LLBL), and the high latitude plasma mantle. Ionospheric particles had direct access along field lines to Geotail, and LLBL ions convected adiabatically to the Geotail location. Plasma mantle ions, on the other hand, exhibited two distinct types of behavior. Most near-Earth mantle ions reached Geotail on adiabatic orbits, while distant mantle ions interacted with the current sheet tailward of Geotail and had mostly nonadiabatic orbits. Ions from the ionosphere, the LLBL, and the near-Earth mantle were directly responsible for the well-separated, low energy structures easily discernible in the observed and modeled distribution functions. Distant mantle ions formed the higher energy portion of the Geotail distribution. Thus, we have been successful in extracting useful information about particle sources, their relative contribution to the measured distribution and the acceleration processes that affected particle transport during this time.

The mosaic structure of plasma bulk flows in the Earth's magnetotail

Moments of plasma distributions observed in the magnetotail vary with different time scales. In this paper we attempt to explain the observed variability on intermediate timescales of ∼10–20 min that result from the simultaneous energization and spatial structuring of solar wind plasma in the distant magnetotail. These processes stimulate the formation of a system of spatially disjointed, highly accelerated filaments (beamlets) in the tail. We use the results from large-scale kinetic modeling of magnetotail formation from a plasma mantle source to calculate moments of ion distribution functions throughout the tail. Statistical restrictions related to the limited number of particles in our system naturally reduce the spatial resolution of our results, but we show that our model is valid on intermediate spatial scales Δx × ΔZ ∼ 1 RE × 1000 km. For these spatial scales the resulting pattern, which resembles a mosaic, appears to be quite variable. The complexity of the pattern is related to the spatial interference between beamlets accelerated at various locations within the distant tail which mirror in the strong near-Earth magnetic field. Global motion of the magnetotail results in the displacement of spacecraft with respect to this mosaic pattern and can produce variations in all of the moments (especially the x-component of the bulk velocity) on intermediate timescales. The results obtained enable us to view the magnetotail plasma as consisting of two different populations: a tail ward-Earthward system of highly accelerated beamlets interfering with each other, and an energized quasithermal population which gradually builds as the Earth is approached. In the near-Earth tail, these populations merge into a hot quasi-isotropic ion population typical of the near-Earth plasma sheet. The transformation of plasma sheet boundary layer (PSBL) beam energy into central plasma sheet (CPS) quasi-thermal energy occurs in the absence of collisions or noise. This paper also clarifies the relationship between the global scale where an MHD description might be appropriate and the lower intermediate scales where MHD fails and large-scale kinetic theory should be used.