Tuija I. Pulkkinen

Neutral line model of substorms: Past results and present view

The near-Earth neutral line (NENL) model of magnetospheric substorms is reviewed. The observed phenomenology of substorms is discussed including the role of coupling with the solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field, the growth phase sequence, the expansion phase (and onset), and the recovery phase. New observations and modeling results are put into the context of the prior model framework. Significant issues and concerns about the shortcomings of the NENL model are addressed. Such issues as ionosphere-tail coupling, large-scale mapping, onset trigger- ing, and observational timing are discussed. It is concluded that the NENL model is evolving and being improved so as to include new observations and theoretical insights. More work is clearly required in order to incorporate fully the complete set of ionospheric, near-tail, midtail, and deep- tail features of substorms. Nonetheless, the NENL model still seems to provide the best avail- able framework for ordering the complex, global manifestations of substorms.

Steady magnetospheric convection: A review of recent results

Theoretical pressure balance arguments have implied that steady convection is hardly possible in the terrestrial magnetotail and that steady energy input necessarily generates a cyclic loading-unloading sequence, i.e., repetitive substorms. However, observations have revealed that enhanced solar wind energy input to the magnetospheric system may either lead to substorm activity or enhanced but steady convection. This topic is reviewed with emphasis on several recent case studies of the Steady Magnetospheric Convection (SMC) events. In these cases extensive data sets from both satellite and ground-based instruments from various magnetospheric and ionospheric regions were available.Accurate distinction of the spatial and temporal scales of the magnetospheric processes is vital for correct interpretation of the observations during SMC periods. We show that on the large scale, the magnetospheric configuration and plasma convection are stable during SMC events, but that both reveal considerable differences from their quiet-time assemblies. On a shorter time scale, there are numerous transient activations which are similar to those found during substorms, but which presumably originate from a more distant tail reconnection process, and map to the poleward boundary of the auroral oval. The available observations and the unresolved questions are summarized here.The tail magnetic field during SMC events resembles both substorm growth and recovery phases in the neartail and midtail, respectively, but this configuration may remain stable for up to ten hours. Based on observations and model results we discuss how the magnetospheric system avoids pressure balance problems when the plasma convects earthward.Finally, the importance of further coordinated studies of SMC events is emphasized. Such studies may shed more light on the substorm dynamics and help to verify quantitatively the theoretical models of the convecting magnetosphere.

Evaluation of the Tail Current Contribution to Dst

The Dst index is produced using low-latitude ground magnetic field measurements and frequently is used as an estimate of the energy density of the ring current carried mainly by energetic (∼ 10 – 200 keV) ions relatively close to the Earth. However, other magnetospheric current systems can cause field perturbations at the Earths surface: for example, dayside magnetopause currents are known to contribute to the Dst index. It has also been suggested that the nightside tail current sheet can significantly affect the Dst index during high magnetic activity periods when the currents are intense and flow relatively close to the Earth. In this study, several disturbed periods are input into Tsyganenko magnetic field models. From the time series of the external and internal fields an artificial Dst index is computed using the same procedure followed in the actual Dst calculation. A tail region in the magnetosphere is explicitly defined and the T96 and T89 models are used to calculate the effect of current within this tail region on ground measurements and therefore on Dst. The results are then compared with the measured Dst to determine the tail current contribution to Dst. It is found that for a geomagnetic storm and a storm-time substorm with Dst of ∼ 80 nT the tail current contribution is between 22 and 26 nT. The same analysis is also applied to several isolated non-storm-time substorms, yielding a nearly linear relationship between Dst and the tail current contribution. This contribution is approximately one quarter of Dst.

Growth-Phase Thinning of the Near-Earth Current Sheet During the Cdaw-6 Substorm

The thinning of the near-Earth current sheet during the growth phase of the CDAW 6 magnetospheric substorm is studied. The expansion onset of the substorm occurred at 1054 UT, March 22, 1979. During the growth phase, two spacecraft, ISEE 1 and ISEE 2, were within the current sheet approximately 13RE from the Earth and obtained simultaneous high-resolution magnetic data at two points in the current sheet. Plasma data were also provided by the ISEE spacecraft and solar wind data by IMP 8. To facilitate the analysis, the GSM magnetic field data are transformed to a “neutral sheet coordinate system” in which the new x axis is parallel to the average magnetic field above and below the neutral sheet and the new y axis lies in the GSM equatorial plane. A model based on the assumption that the current sheet is a time-invariant structure fails to predict neutral sheet crossing times. Consequently, the Harris sheet model, which allows one to remove the restriction of time invariancy, is used instead. It is found that during the growth phase, a model parameter corresponding to the thickness of the current sheet decreased exponentially from about 5RE to 1RE with a time constant of about 14 min. In addition, the ISEE 1 and ISEE 2 neutral sheet crossings after expansion onset indicate that the neutral sheet was moving upward at 7 km/s relative to the spacecraft. Since both crossings occurred in approximately 80 s, the current sheet thickness is estimated to be about 500 km. These results demonstrate that the near-Earth current sheet undergoes dramatic thinning during the substorm growth phase and expansion onset.

Pseudobreakup and substorm growth phase in the ionosphere and magnetosphere

We present observations made in space and on the ground during the growth phase and the onset of a substorm on August 31, 1986. About 20 min after the e parameter at the magnetopause had exceeded 1011 W, magnetic field dipolarization with an increase of energetic particle fluxes was observed by the AMPTE Charge Composition Explorer (CCE) spacecraft at the geocentric distance of 8.7 RE close to magnetic midnight. The event exhibited local signatures of a substorm onset at AMPTE CCE and a weak wedgelike current system in the midnight sector ionosphere. However, it did not lead to a full-scale substorm expansion, as determined by several ground-based instruments, nor did it produce large particle injections at geostationary orbit. Only after another 20 min of continued growth phase the entire magnetosphere-ionosphere system could apparently allow the onset of a regular substorm expansion. The initial activation is interpreted in the present paper as a “pseudobreakup.” We examine the physical conditions in the near-Earth plasma sheet using spacecraft observations and analyze the development in the ionosphere using ground-based magnetometers and electric field observations from the STARE radar. We find that the main observable differences between pseudobreakups and ordinary breakups are the strength and consequences. Furthermore, it is shown that ionospheric activity at the time of a pseudobreakup is not necessarily as localized in longitude as generally believed.

Particle scattering and current sheet stability in the geomagnetic tail during the substorm growth phase

The degree of pitch angle scattering and chaotization of various particle populations in the geomagnetic tail during the substorm growth phase is studied by utilizing the Tsyganenko 1989 magnetic field model. A temporally evolving magnetic field model for the growth phase is constructed by enhancing the near-Earth currents and thinning the current sheet from the values given by the static Tsyganenko model. Changing the field geometry toward an increasingly taillike configuration leads to pitch angle scattering of particles whose Larmor radii become comparable to the field line radius of curvature. Several different cases representing substorms with varying levels of magnetic disturbance have been studied. In each case, the field development during the growth phase leads to considerable scattering of the thermal electrons relatively close to the Earth. The current sheet regions where the electron motion is chaotic are magnetically mapped to the ionosphere and compared with low-altitude measurements of electron precipitation. The chaotization of the thermal electron population occurs within a few minutes of the substorm onset, and the ionospheric mappings of the chaotic regions in the equatorial plane compare well with the region of brightening auroras. Even though the temporal evolution of the complex plasma system cannot be self-consistently described by the temporal evolution of the empirical field model, these models can provide the most accurate estimates of the field parameters for tail stability calculations.

Modeling the Growth-Phase of a Substorm Using the Tsyganenko Model and Multi-Spacecraft Observations - Cdaw-9

The CDAW-9 Event C focused upon the early part of 3 May 1986 when a large substorm onset occurred at 0111 UT. By modifying the Tsyganenko 1989 magnetic field model, the authors construct a model in which the near-Earth current systems are enhanced with time to describe the observed development of the tail magnetic field during the growth phase. The cross-tail current intensity and the thickness of the current sheet are determined by comparison with three spacecraft in the near-Earth tail. The location of the auroral bulge as recorded by the Viking imager is mapped to the equatorial current sheet. The degree of chaotization of the thermal electrons is estimated, and the consequences to the tail stability towards ion tearing are discussed. The authors conclude that the mapping of the brightening region in the auroral oval corresponds to the regions in the tail where the current sheet may be unstable towards ion tearing.

A strong CME‐related magnetic cloud interaction with the Earth's Magnetosphere: ISTP observations of rapid relativistic electron acceleration on May 15, 1997

A geoeffective magnetic cloud impacted the Earth early on 15 May 1997. The cloud exhibited strong initial southward interplanetary magnetic field (BZ∼−25 nT), which caused intense substorm activity and an intense geomagnetic storm (Dst ∼−170 nT). SAMPEX data showed that relativistic electrons (E ≳ 1.0 MeV) appeared suddenly deep in the magnetosphere at L=3 to 4. These electrons were not directly “injected” from higher altitudes (i.e., from the magnetotail), nor did they come from an interplanetary source. The electron increase was preceded (for ∼2 hrs) by remarkably strong low-frequency wave activity as seen by CANOPUS ground stations and by the GOES-8 spacecraft at geostationary orbit. POLAR/CEPPAD measurements support the result that high-energy electrons suddenly appeared deep in the magnetosphere. Thus, these new multi-point data suggest that strong magnetospheric waves can quickly and efficiently accelerate electrons to multi-MeV energies deep in the radiation belts on timescales of tens of minutes.

Coupled‐mode scenario for the magnetospheric dynamics

Substorm phenomena are reviewed with emphasis on the magnetospheric source region of the onset, on the morphology of the initial breakup and subsequent activations, and on the variable character of individual substorms. We provide evidence that before the substorm onset and during the following activations an intense, thin current sheet is formed at the interface between the quasi-dipolar and taillike magnetic field regions. We infer that the initial breakup, the following multiple activations, pseudobreakups, and other short-term activations during nonsubstorm times are all similar in morphology and have the same formation mechanism. We postulate that the elementary units of energy dissipation, impulsive dissipation events, which are localized in space and have a short lifetime of ∼1 min, are the manifestations of tail reconnection. We also emphasize the evidence that previous authors have presented in favor of this time dependence and localization. On the basis of the above, we suggest that there are two basic magnetospheric processes responsible for energy storage and dissipation during both substorm and nonsubstorm times: A global and slow quasi-static tail reconfiguration responsible for the energy storage, and a sequence of local, sporadic, short-term energy dissipation events. These competitive processes can be observed most the time in some part of the plasma sheet; their relative intensity determines the type of large-scale dynamic evolution. In this scenario, the various dynamical situations are interpreted as variations in the balance between the two competing processes.

MHD simulation of the magnetotail during the December 10, 1996, substorm

This paper presents results of a global MHD simulation of a substorm that occurred on December 10, 1996. We concentrate on the relationship between the simulation results and the magnetotail observations during the growth and expansion phases of the substorm. In general, we find excellent agreement between the single point observations made by various spacecraft in both the geosynchronous and mid-tail regions: the simulation accurately represented the energy loading (lobe field increase), small-scale activations (partial dipolarizations), and a global substorm onset (large dipolarizations and fast flows). The global view presented by the simulation shows complex series of discrete flow channels during the expansion phase prior to the onset of global reconnection. It is these flows channels that disrupt the thin current sheets present during the expansion phase of the substorm.