Quantifying Radiation Belt Losses due to Wave-Particle Interactions with Global Test Particle Simulations
Abstract
Magnetospheric plasma waves play a significant role in radiation belt dynamics, providing both a source and loss to the radiation belt electrons through energization and precipitation driven by pitch angle scattering. Distinguishing the relative contribution of wave-particle interactions on radiation belt flux variations remains observationally challenging as they often occur in conjunction with other important acceleration and loss mechanisms. Numerical simulations are in a unique position to address this question; however, this requires a first-principles model that includes both realistic dynamic global magnetic field and microscopic wave-particle interactions. In this work, we incorporate electron gyroresonance with parallel propagating whistler modes into our three-dimensional, test particle model, CHIMP. Pitch-angle scattering and energization of the test particles are derived from an analytical expression for the quasi-linear diffusion coefficient and resonant diffusion curves. The global, dynamic electromagnetic fields are generated from our newly-developed global magnetosphere model, GAMERA, coupled to the Rice Convection Model. GAMERA is a sophisticated reinvention of the LFM model capable of resolving crucial mesoscale features needed to accurately model storm-time dynamics. We will quantify the impact of wave-particle interactions on the outer belt electron losses and discuss their relative importance with magnetopause losses under geomagnetic storm conditions through direct comparisons when resonant interactions are not included.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2020
- Bibcode:
- 2020AGUFMSM0310003M
- Keywords:
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- 2716 Energetic particles: precipitating;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS;
- 2768 Plasmasphere;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS;
- 2772 Plasma waves and instabilities;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS;
- 2774 Radiation belts;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS