Substorm-associated shrinkage of the mid-tail magnetosphere: IACG campaign #2

H. Kawano, R. Nakamura, S. Kokubun, T. Mukai, T. Yamamoto, K. Yumoto, J. A. Slavin

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

In the framework of IACG Campaign #2, we study a case in which the GEOTAIL spacecraft was close to the mid-tail magnetopause when three substorms took place. GEOTAIL was mainly located within the dawnside plasmasheet, and its average speed normal to the nominal magnetopause was very small (∼0.2 R E /hr) because it was near its apogee. It exited to the LLBL∼magnetosheath during the expansion to recovery phases of each substorm, stayed there for a while, and then returned to the plasmasheet near the end of the recovery phase. This pattern suggests a shrinkage of the mid-tail magnetosphere after the expansion onset so that the tail radius becomes smaller than that in the quiet time. We interpret it as a result of strong tailward flows from the near-Earth neutral line which transports plasma in the mid-tail region to the distant tail and causes a rarefaction in the mid-tail region.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1689-1696
Number of pages8
JournalAdvances in Space Research
Volume25
Issue number7-8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2000

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Aerospace Engineering
  • Astronomy and Astrophysics
  • Geophysics
  • Atmospheric Science
  • Space and Planetary Science
  • Earth and Planetary Sciences(all)

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