Auroral zone field-aligned currents observed in the magnetotail and at intermediate altitudes - An ISEE perspective

The relationship between low-altitude auroral-zone field-aligned currents and the geomagnetic tail is investigated on the basis of a statistical analysis of ISEE and DE observations. The data are compiled in diagrams and graphs and characterized in detail. It is shown that the large-scale current systems of low-altitude regions 1 and 2 are only reduplicated in 27 percent of the observations at 2-7 earth radii (those associated with the onset of a substorm expansion), while the flow at the plasma-sheet boundary opposes the region 1 polarity (the highest-latitude near-midnight currents being directed earthward).