Auroral electron acceleration by lower-hybrid waves.

The possibility that the electrons producing discrete aurora are stochastically accelerated by waves is investigated. It is demonstrated that the lower-hybrid waves seen on auroral field lines have the right properties to account for the electron acceleration. It is further shown that the lower-hybrid wave power measured on auroral field lines can be generated by the streaming ions observed at the boundary of the plasma sheet, and that this wave power is sufficient to account for the electron distributions observed close to the atmosphere.