scholarly journals Evidence of the nonstationarity of the terrestrial bow shock from multi-spacecraft observations: methodology, results, and quantitative comparison with particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 571-598
Author(s):  
Christian Mazelle ◽  
Bertrand Lembège
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Lower Bound ◽  
Data Processing ◽  
Shock Front ◽  
Upper Bound ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Bow Shock ◽  
Time Variability ◽  
Fluxgate Magnetometer ◽  
Particle In Cell

Abstract. The nonstationarity of the terrestrial bow shock is analyzed in detail from in situ magnetic field measurements issued from the fluxgate magnetometer (FGM) experiment of the Cluster mission. Attention is focused on statistical analysis of quasi-perpendicular supercritical shock crossings. The present analysis stresses for the first time the importance of a careful and accurate methodology in the data processing, which can be a source of confusion and misunderstanding if not treated properly. The analysis performed using 96 shock front crossings shows evidence of a strong variability of the microstructures of the shock front (foot and ramp), which are analyzed in great detail. The main results are that (i) most statistics clearly show that the ramp thickness is very narrow and can be as low as a few c/ωpe (electron inertia length); (ii) the width is narrower when the angle θBn (between the shock normal and the upstream magnetic field) approaches 90∘; (iii) the foot thickness strongly varies, but its variation has an upper limit provided by theoretical estimates given in previous studies (e.g., Schwartz et al., 1983; Gosling and Thomsen, 1985; Gosling and Robson, 1985); and (iv) the presence of foot and overshoot, as shown in all front profiles, confirms the importance of dissipative effects. Present results indicate that these features can be signatures of the shock front self-reformation among a few mechanisms of nonstationarity identified from numerical simulation and theoretical studies. A comparison with 2D particle-in-cell (PIC) simulation for a perpendicular supercritical shock (used as reference) has been performed and shows the following: (a) the ramp thickness varies only slightly in time over a large fraction of the reformation cycle and reaches a lower-bound value on the order of a few electron inertial length; (b) in contrast, the foot width strongly varies during a self-reformation cycle but always stays lower than an upper-bound value in agreement with the value given by Woods (1971); and (c) as a consequence, the time variability of the whole shock front is depending on both ramp and foot variations. Moreover, a detailed comparative analysis shows that many elements of analysis were missing in previous reported studies concerning both (i) the important criteria used in the data selection and (ii) the different and careful steps of the methodology used in the data processing itself. The absence of these precise elements of analysis makes the comparison with the present work difficult; worse, it makes some final results and conclusive statements quite questionable at the present time. At least, looking for a precise estimate of the shock transition thickness presents nowadays a restricted interest, since recent results show that the terrestrial shock is rather nonstationary, and one unique typical spatial scaling of the microstructures of the front (ramp, foot) must be replaced by some “variation ranges” (with lower-bound and upper-bound values) within which the spatial scales of the fine structures can extend.

scholarly journals Evidence of the Nonstationarity of the Terrestrial Bow Shock from Multi-Spacecraft Observations: Methodology, Results and Quantitative Comparison with PIC Simulations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Mazelle ◽  
Bertrand Lembege
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Lower Bound ◽  
Data Processing ◽  
Shock Front ◽  
Upper Bound ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Bow Shock ◽  
Time Variability

Abstract. The nonstationarity of the terrestrial bow shock is analyzed in detail from in situ magnetic field measurements issued from the FGM experiment on board of Cluster mission. Attention is focused on statistical analysis of quasiperpendicular supercritical shock crossings. The present analysis stresses for the first time the importance of a careful and accurate methodology in the data processing which can be a source of confusion/misunderstanding if not treated properly. The analysis performed using 96 shock front crossings shows evidence of a strong variability of the microstructures of the shock front (foot and ramp) which are analyzed in deep details. Main results are: (i) most statistics clearly evidence that the ramp thickness is very narrow and can be as low as a few c/ωpe (electron inertia length), (ii) the width is narrower when the angle θBn (between the shock normal and the upstream magnetic field) approaches 90°, (iii) the foot thickness strongly varies but its variation has an upper limit provided by theoretical estimates given in previous studies (e.g., Schwartz et al., 1983; Gosling and Thomsen, 1985; Gosling and Robson, 1985); (iv) the presence of foot and overshoot, as shown in all front profiles confirms the importance of dissipative effects. Present results indicate that these features can be signatures of the shock front self-reformation among a few mechanisms of nonstationarity identified from numerical simulation/theoretical works. A comparison 2D PIC simulation for a perpendicular supercritical shock (used as reference), has been performed and it shows that: (a) the ramp thickness varies only slightly in time over a large fraction of the reformation cycle and reaches a lower bound value of the order of a few electron inertial length, (ii) in contrast, the foot width strongly varies during a self-reformation cycle but always stays lower than an upper bound value in agreement with the value given by Woods (1971), and (iii) as a consequence, the time variability of the whole shock front is depending on both ramp and foot variations. Moreover, a detailed comparative analysis shows that much elements of analysis were missing in previous reported works concerning both (i) the important criteria used in the data selection and (ii) the different and careful steps of the methodology used in the data processing itself. This absence of these precise elements of analysis makes the comparison with present work difficult, worse, it makes some final results and conclusive statements quite questionable at present time. A least, looking for a precise estimate of the shock transition thickness presents nowadays a restricted interest, since recent results show that the terrestrial shock is rather nonstationary and one unique typical spatial scaling of the microstructures of the front (ramp, foot) must be replaced by some variation ranges (with lower bound/upper bound values) within which the spatial scales of the fine structures can extend.

scholarly journals Low-frequency magnetic variations at the high-<i>β</i> Earth bow shock

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (5) ◽  
pp. 877-889
Author(s):  
Anatoli A. Petrukovich ◽  
Olga M. Chugunova ◽  
Pavel I. Shustov
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Solar Wind ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Background Field ◽  
Bow Shock ◽  
Stable Phase ◽  
Main Magnetic Field ◽  
Astrophysical Plasmas ◽  
Earth’S Bow Shock

Abstract. Observations of Earth's bow shock during high-β (ratio of thermal to magnetic pressure) solar wind streams are rare. However, such shocks are ubiquitous in astrophysical plasmas. Typical solar wind parameters related to high β (here β>10) are as follows: low speed, high density, and a very low interplanetary magnetic field of 1–2 nT. These conditions are usually quite transient and need to be verified immediately upstream of the observed shock crossings. In this report, three characteristic crossings by the Cluster project (from the 22 found) are studied using multipoint analysis, allowing us to determine spatial scales. The main magnetic field and density spatial scale of about a couple of hundred of kilometers generally corresponds to the increased proton convective gyroradius. Observed magnetic variations are different from those for supercritical shocks, with β∼1. Dominant magnetic variations in the shock transition have amplitudes much larger than the background field and have a frequency of ∼ 0.3–0.5 Hz (in some events – 1–2 Hz). The wave polarization has no stable phase and is closer to linear, which complicates the determination of the wave propagation direction. Spatial scales (wavelengths) of variations are within several tens to a couple of hundred of kilometers.

A kinetic formation model of foreshock transients

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry Zixu Liu ◽  
Xin An ◽  
Hui Zhang ◽  
Drew Turner
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Positive Feedback ◽  
Formation Process ◽  
Hall Current ◽  
Dynamic Pressure ◽  
Bow Shock ◽  
Fermi Acceleration ◽  
Formation Model ◽  
Particle In Cell ◽  
Pressure Perturbations

&lt;p&gt;Foreshock transients are ion kinetic structures in the ion foreshock. Due to their dynamic pressure perturbations, they can disturb the bow shock, magnetosheath, magnetopause, and magnetosphere-ionosphere system. Recent studies found that they can also accelerate particles through shock drift acceleration, Fermi acceleration, betatron acceleration, and magnetic reconnection. Although foreshock transients are important, how they form is still not fully understood. Using particle-in-cell simulations and MMS observations, we propose a physical formation process that the positive feedback of demagnetized foreshock ions on the varying magnetic field caused by the foreshock ion Hall current enables an &amp;#8220;instability&amp;#8221; and the growth of the structure.&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals Corotation-driven magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling currents in Saturn’s magnetosphere and their relation to the auroras

2003 ◽  
Vol 21 (8) ◽  
pp. 1691-1707 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. W. H. Cowley ◽  
E. J. Bunce
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Angular Velocity ◽  
Equatorial Plane ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Outer Boundary ◽  
Time Variability ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Velocity Models ◽  
Field Aligned Current

Abstract. We calculate the latitude profile of the equatorward-directed ionospheric Pedersen currents that are driven in Saturn’s ionosphere by partial corotation of the magnetospheric plasma. The calculation incorporates the flattened figure of the planet, a model of Saturn’s magnetic field derived from spacecraft flyby data, and angular velocity models derived from Voyager plasma data. We also employ an effective height-integrated ionospheric Pedersen conductivity of 1 mho, suggested by a related analysis of Voyager magnetic field data. The Voyager plasma data suggest that on the largest spatial scales, the plasma angular velocity declines from near-rigid corotation with the planet in the inner magnetosphere, to values of about half of rigid corotation at the outer boundary of the region considered. The latter extends to ~ 15–20 Saturn radii (RS) in the equatorial plane, mapping along magnetic field lines to ~ 15° co-latitude in the ionosphere. We find in this case that the ionospheric Pedersen current peaks near the poleward (outer) boundary of this region, and falls toward zero over ~ 5°–10° equator-ward of the boundary as the plasma approaches rigid corotation. The peak current near the poleward boundary, integrated in azimuth, is ~ 6 MA. The field-aligned current required for continuity is directed out of the ionosphere into the magnetosphere essentially throughout the region, with the current density peaking at ~ 10 nA m-2 at ~ 20° co-latitude. We estimate that such current densities are well below the limit requiring field-aligned acceleration of magnetospheric electrons in Saturn’s environment ( ~ 70 nAm-2), so that no significant auroral features associated with this ring of upward current is anticipated. The observed ultraviolet auroras at Saturn are also found to occur significantly closer to the pole (at ~ 10°–15° co-latitude), and show considerable temporal and local time variability, contrary to expectations for corotation-related currents. We thus conclude that Saturn’s ‘main oval’ auroras are not associated with corotation-enforcing currents as they are at Jupiter, but instead are most probably associated with coupling to the solar wind as at Earth. At the same time, the Voyager flow observations also suggest the presence of radially localized ‘dips’ in the plasma angular velocity associated with the moons Dione and Rhea, which are ~ 1–2 RS in radial extent in the equatorial plane. The presence of such small-scale flow features, assumed to be azimuthally extended, results in localized several-MA enhancements in the ionospheric Pedersen current, and narrow bi-polar signatures in the field-aligned currents which peak at values an order of magnitude larger than those associated with the large-scale currents. Narrow auroral rings (or partial rings) ~ 0.25° co-latitude wide with intensities ~ 1 kiloRayleigh may be formed in the regions of upward field-aligned current under favourable circumstances, located at co-latitudes between ~ 17° and ~ 20° in the north, and ~ 19° and ~22° in the south.Key words. Magnetospheric physics (current systems; magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions; planetary magnetospheres)

How radial and quasi radial IMF impact the Earth's magnetopause's size, location, and shape. Does this impact generate Dawn-Dusk asymmetry in the magnetosheath?: Global 3D Kinetic Simulations. 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suleiman Baraka ◽  
Olivier Le Contel ◽  
Lotfi Ben-Jaffel ◽  
Bill Moore
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Maximum Density ◽  
Bow Shock ◽  
Temperature Anisotropy ◽  
Pressure System ◽  
Particle In Cell ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Shape And Size ◽  
Dipole Tilt

&lt;p&gt;The boundary between the solar wind (SW) and the Earth&amp;#8217;s magnetosphere, named the magnetopause (MP), is highly dynamic. Its location and shape can vary as a function of different SW parameters such as density, velocity, and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) orientations. We employ a 3D kinetic Particle-In-Cell (IAPIC) code to simulate these effects. &amp;#160;We investigate the impact of radial (B = Bx) and quasi-radial (Bz &lt; Bx, By) IMF on the shape and size of Earth&amp;#8217;s MP for a dipole tilt of 31&lt;sup&gt;o&lt;/sup&gt; using both maximum density steepening and pressure system balance methods for identifying the boundary. We find that, compared with northward or southward-dominant IMF conditions, the MP position expands asymmetrically by 8 to 22% under radial IMF. In addition, we construct the MP shape along the tilted magnetic equator and the OX axes showing that the expansion is asymmetric, not global, stronger on the MP flanks, and is sensitive to the ambient IMF. Finally, we investigate the contribution of SW backstreaming ions by the bow shock to the MP expansion, the temperature anisotropy in the magnetosheath, and a strong dawn-dusk asymmetry in MP location.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals Density jump as a function of magnetic field strength for parallel collisionless shocks in pair plasmas

2018 ◽  
Vol 84 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Antoine Bret ◽  
Ramesh Narayan
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Field Strength ◽  
Shock Front ◽  
Functional Dependence ◽  
Density Jump ◽  
Collisionless Shocks ◽  
Particle In Cell ◽  
Pair Plasma ◽  
Collisionless Regime

Collisionless shocks follow the Rankine–Hugoniot jump conditions to a good approximation. However, for a shock propagating parallel to a magnetic field, magnetohydrodynamics states that the shock properties are independent of the field strength, whereas recent particle-in-cell simulations reveal a significant departure from magnetohydrodynamics behaviour for such shocks in the collisionless regime. This departure is found to be caused by a field-driven anisotropy in the downstream pressure, but the functional dependence of this anisotropy on the field strength is yet to be determined. Here, we present a non-relativistic model of the plasma evolution through the shock front, allowing for a derivation of the downstream anisotropy in terms of the field strength. Our scenario assumes double adiabatic evolution of a pair plasma through the shock front. As a result, the perpendicular temperature is conserved. If the resulting downstream is firehose stable, then the plasma remains in this state. If unstable, it migrates towards the firehose stability threshold. In both cases, the conservation equations, together with the relevant hypothesis made on the temperature, allows a full determination of the downstream anisotropy in terms of the field strength.

scholarly journals Computer Simulations of Electromagnetic Emissions Produced via Injection of Electron Beam into a Plasma with Strong Transverse Density Gradients

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 5-16
Author(s):  
V. V. Glinskiy ◽  
I. V. Timofeev ◽  
V. V. Annenkov ◽  
A. V. Arzhannikov
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Plasma Density ◽  
Plasma Frequency ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Longitudinal Direction ◽  
Magnetized Plasma ◽  
Density Gradients ◽  
The Real ◽  
Particle In Cell ◽  
Strong Transverse

Recent experiments on the injection of kiloampere electron beams into a magnetized plasma at the GOL-PET facility have shown that the power of sub-terahertz radiation escaping from the plasma along the magnetic field increases by more than an order of magnitude if strong transverse density gradients are preliminarily created in the plasma. In this paper, the influence of transverse in homogeneities of plasma density on the efficiency of electromagnetic radiation generation near the harmonics of the plasma frequency is studied using particle-in-cell simulations. Simulations performed for the real relative density of the beam and the real spatial scales of the in homogeneity show that the beam instability develops only in the density wells, and the small transverse size of its localization comparable with the wavelength contributes to a more efficient conversion of unstable oscillations into electromagnetic ones. Despite the fact that radiation at the plasma frequency is blocked across the leading magnetic field, it can leave the generation region with the decrease of the plasma density in the longitudinal direction.

scholarly journals Regional background O<sub>3</sub> and NO<sub><i>x</i></sub> in the Houston–Galveston–Brazoria (TX) region: a decadal-scale perspective

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (11) ◽  
pp. 6565-6581 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loredana G. Suciu ◽  
Robert J. Griffin ◽  
Caroline A. Masiello
Keyword(s):  
Lower Bound ◽  
Upper Bound ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Ambient Air ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Regional Background ◽  
Decadal Scale

Abstract. Ozone (O3) in the lower troposphere is harmful to people and plants, particularly during summer, when photochemistry is most active and higher temperatures favor local chemistry. Local precursor emissions, such as those of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), together with their chemistry contribute to the O3 and NOx mixing ratios in the Houston–Galveston–Brazoria (HGB) region. In addition to local emissions, chemistry and transport, larger-scale factors also contribute to local O3 and NOx. These additional contributions (often referred to as regional background) are not well quantified within the HGB region, impeding more efficient controls on precursor emissions to achieve compliance with the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for O3. In this study, we estimate ground-level regional background O3 and NOx in the HGB region and quantify their decadal-scale trends.We use four different approaches based on principal component analysis (PCA) to quantify background O3 and NOx. Three of these approaches consist of independent PCA on both O3 and NOx for both 1 and 8 h levels to compare our results with previous studies and to highlight the effect of both temporal and spatial scales. In the fourth approach, we co-varied O3, NOx and meteorology.Our results show that the estimation of regional background O3 has less inherent uncertainty when it was constrained by NOx and meteorology, yielding a statistically significant temporal trend of −0.68 ± 0.27 ppb yr−1. Likewise, the estimation of regional background NOx trend constrained by O3 and meteorology was −0.04 ± 0.02 ppb yr−1 (upper bound) and −0.03 ± 0.01 ppb yr−1 (lower bound). Our best estimates of the 17-year average of season-scale background O3 and NOx were 46.72 ± 2.08 ppb and 6.80 ± 0.13 ppb (upper bound) or 4.45 ± 0.08 ppb (lower bound), respectively. Average background O3 is consistent with previous studies and between the approaches used in this study, although the approaches based on 8 h averages likely overestimate background O3 compared to the hourly median approach by 7–9 ppb. Similarly, the upper bound of average background NOx is consistent between approaches in this study (A–C) but overestimated compared to the hourly approach by 1 ppb, on average. We likely overestimate the upper-bound background NOx due to instrument overdetection of NOx and the 8 h averaging of NOx and meteorology coinciding with MDA8 O3.Regional background O3 and NOx in the HGB region both have declined over the past 2 decades. This decline became steadier after 2007, overlapping with the effects of controlling precursor emissions and a prevailing southeasterly–southerly flow.

Effects of upstream conditions on ULF waves and SLAMS formation at Saturn

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zsofia Bebesi ◽  
Antal Juhasz
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Simple Model ◽  
Shock Front ◽  
Large Amplitude ◽  
Plasma Pressure ◽  
Bow Shock ◽  
Wave Formation ◽  
Ulf Waves ◽  
Magnetic Structures ◽  
Ulf Wave

&lt;p&gt;In this study we present occurences of SLAMS (short large-amplitude magnetic structures) upstream of the quasi-parallel bow shock of Saturn. Five events are analyzed in more detail using the data of the CAPS and MAG instruments of Cassini. Directional and speed analysis of the backstreaming particles related to ULF wave formation (and subsequent SLAMS evolution) in the foreshock region is presented. We also correlate the measured the ULF wave frequencies with the variations of the upstream magnetic field.&lt;br&gt;With a simple model we estimate the distance of the observed SLAMS from the bow shock front based on the measured plasma pressure. We also&amp;#160;&lt;br&gt;discuss the spatial characteristics of SLAMS observed near Saturn.&lt;/p&gt;

scholarly journals Energetics of magnetic transients in a solar active region plage

2019 ◽  
Vol 623 ◽  
pp. A176 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. P. Chitta ◽  
A. R. C. Sukarmadji ◽  
L. Rouppe van der Voort ◽  
H. Peter
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Field ◽  
Active Region ◽  
Magnetic Flux ◽  
Numerical Simulations ◽  
Extreme Ultraviolet ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Coronal Loops ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Flux Emergence ◽  
Transient Events

Context. Densely packed coronal loops are rooted in photospheric plages in the vicinity of active regions on the Sun. The photospheric magnetic features underlying these plage areas are patches of mostly unidirectional magnetic field extending several arcsec on the solar surface. Aims. We aim to explore the transient nature of the magnetic field, its mixed-polarity characteristics, and the associated energetics in the active region plage using high spatial resolution observations and numerical simulations. Methods. We used photospheric Fe I 6173 Å spectropolarimetric observations of a decaying active region obtained from the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope (SST). These data were inverted to retrieve the photospheric magnetic field underlying the plage as identified in the extreme-ultraviolet emission maps obtained from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). To obtain better insight into the evolution of extended unidirectional magnetic field patches on the Sun, we performed 3D radiation magnetohydrodynamic simulations of magnetoconvection using the MURaM code. Results. The observations show transient magnetic flux emergence and cancellation events within the extended predominantly unipolar patch on timescales of a few 100 s and on spatial scales comparable to granules. These transient events occur at the footpoints of active region plage loops. In one case the coronal response at the footpoints of these loops is clearly associated with the underlying transient. The numerical simulations also reveal similar magnetic flux emergence and cancellation events that extend to even smaller spatial and temporal scales. Individual simulated transient events transfer an energy flux in excess of 1 MW m−2 through the photosphere. Conclusions. We suggest that the magnetic transients could play an important role in the energetics of active region plage. Both in observations and simulations, the opposite-polarity magnetic field brought up by transient flux emergence cancels with the surrounding plage field. Magnetic reconnection associated with such transient events likely conduits magnetic energy to power the overlying chromosphere and coronal loops.

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