Effects of idealized plasma sheet bubble injections on global distribution of field aligned currents
Abstract
Knowledge of the distribution and dynamics of the Birkeland field-aligned currents (FACs) is crucial to understanding energy and momentum transfer in the magnetosphere-ionosphere-thermosphere system. observations, simulations and models agree in the essential contribution of frequent bursty bulk flows (BBFs) or bubble injections to the storm time near-Earth plasma sheet and auroral patterns associated with FACs. Though the well-known Iijima-Potemra picture of large-scale region-1 and region-2 FACs have been investigated in many studies in the past, less attention has been paid to the fundamental characteristics of more intense FACs (≥1μA/m2) associated with meso-scale (<50km) magnetic perturbations in the ionosphere. These meso-scale FACs embedded within the large-scale FAC structures are believed to be very important on shorter time scales (minutes to tens of minutes). In this presentation, we will investigate the development and average configuration of meso-scale FACs and their connection with large-scale counterparts using the Inertialized Rice Convection Model. With the inertial effects included in the model, we expect to get more accurate representation of the global distribution of FACs. Further, the effect of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions and altitude dependence (through local plasma density) of meso-scale FACs will be investigated as well. Defining a new parameter in our simulation named "occurrence probability of intense FACs" (i.e., ≥1μA/m2), we will compare our results with those obtained from statistical observations of low-orbiting satellites.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2020
- Bibcode:
- 2020AGUFMSM058..02S
- Keywords:
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- 2427 Ionosphere/atmosphere interactions;
- IONOSPHERE;
- 2736 Magnetosphere/ionosphere interactions;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS;
- 2740 Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS;
- 2788 Magnetic storms and substorms;
- MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS