HR: 13:40h
AN: SM52C-01 INVITED     [PDF]
TI: Some Questions Concerning the Coupling of the Plasmasphere to the Ionosphere and Other Regions
AU: * Carpenter, D L
EM: dlc@nova.stanford.edu
AF: Stanford University, STAR laboratory/EE Dept., Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305-9515 United States
AB: This talk is intended to touch upon, and hopefully stimulate interest in, a number of questions that have arisen during past experimental work on the plasmasphere or underlying ionosphere. During disturbed periods, substantial amounts of plasma appear to be lost from the plasmasphere by interchange fluxes with the ionosphere. What is the mechanism of this loss and what is its effect on the ionosphere? What mechanisms establish and control the properties of the plasmapause boundary layer or plasmapause region? How could the development of a new plasmapause boundary be observed with, say, kilometer scale resolution and on a time scale of minutes? Is there a combination of ground based radar and rocket experiments that could accomplish this? Irregular density structure frequently appears in the plasmapause region. How and when do these irregularities form, and what role does the ionosphere play in their formation? At times, but possibly only in the early stages of disturbance, a steep plasmapause boundary is detected at altitudes of a few thousand km. How do the properties of the plasmasphere boundary layer, or plasmapause region, vary as a function of distance along the field lines from the equator to the ionosphere? Limited evidence suggests that the low and high altitude convection flows of eroded plasmasphere plasma may be at least partially decoupled along field lines near the dayside magnetopause. What role do turbulent electric fields play in this process?
DE: 2736 Magnetosphere/ionosphere interactions
DE: 2768 Plasmasphere
DE: 2772 Plasma waves and instabilities
SC: SPA - Magnetospheric Physics [SM]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting