HR: 14:20h
AN: SM23C-03    [Abstracts]
TI: Double Star and Cluster Observations of Magnetic Reconnection at the Dayside Magnetopause
AU: * Pu, Z
EM: zypu@pku.edu.cn
AF: School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Yiheyuan Street, Beijing, 100871 China
AU: Liu, Z
SM23C-03 AF: Center for Space Science and Application Research, CAS, No. 1, Nanertiao,Zhongguancun, Beijing, 100080 China
AU: Dunlop, M
SM23C-03 AF: Space Sciences Division,RAL,Oxford, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon, OX11 0QX United Kingdom
AB: Coordinate Double Star and Cluster measurements have brought new results concerning the physics of the magnetopause. We can see for the first time, the evolution of structures at small scales within the Cluster tetrahedron, and then at large scales with Cluster and Double Star conjunction. This paper presents a part of Double Star and Cluster observations of magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause by introducing a few interesting events. These include: (a) TC-1 observations of the magnetic shear angle across the magnetopause near/at the reconnection site which was considerably smaller than 180 degree and observations of noticeable guide field near/in the diffusion region. (b) TC-1 observations of magnetic reconnection at the dayside low-latitude magnetopause for northward IMF when a strong By component exists. (c) Observations of plasma jets simultaneously at the subsolar point and near the cusp, suggesting that reconnection is preferentially initiated near the subsolar point and then propagates to the high-latitudes. (d) Almost simultaneous observations of an FTE by Cluster and TC-1 at different positions of the flux rope. This allows us to infer the large-scale configuration of the reconnected magnetic tube near the dayside magnetopause. (e) Simultaneous multi-spacecraft observations of reconnection signatures by Cluster at the northern high-latitude magnetopause, TC-1 in the low-latitude region and TC-2 in the southern low-altitude cusp, together with IMAGE in the southern hemisphere. The possible implications of these observations are discussed. New challenges to the present theories of magnetic reconnection and magnetopause reconnection models are addressed.
DE: 2700 MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS (6939)
DE: 2723 Magnetic reconnection (7526, 7835)
DE: 2724 Magnetopause and boundary layers
DE: 2740 Magnetospheric configuration and dynamics
DE: 7800 SPACE PLASMA PHYSICS
SC: SPA-Magnetospheric Physics [SM]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005