HR: 15:25h
AN: SM23C-07    [Abstracts]
TI: Flux transfer event in the subsolar region and near the cusp: Simultaneous Polar and Cluster Observations
AU: * Le, G
EM: Guan.Le@nasa.gov
AF: Laboratory for Solar and Space Physics, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 United States
AU: Zheng, Y
EM: Yihua.Zheng@jhuapl.edu
AF: Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD 20723 United States
AU: Russell, C T
EM: ctrussell@igpp.ucla.edu
AF: Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1567 United States
AU: Pfaff, R F
EM: Robert.F.Pfaff@nasa.gov
AF: Laboratory for Solar and Space Physics, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 United States
AU: Slavin, J A
EM: James.A.Slavin@nasa.gov
AF: Laboratory for Solar and Space Physics, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 United States
AU: Lin, N
EM: nlin@ssl.berkeley.edu
AF: 5. Space Physics Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 United States
AU: Mozer, F
EM: fmozer@ssl.berkeley.edu
AF: 5. Space Physics Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 United States
AU: Parks, G
EM: parks@ssl.berkeley.edu
AF: 5. Space Physics Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 United States
AU: Petrinec, S M
EM: petrinec@star.spasci.com
AF: Space Physics Laboratory, Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center, Palo Alto, CA 94304-1187 United States
AU: Lucek, E A
EM: e.lucek@ic.ac.uk
AF: Department of Space and Atmospheric Physics, Imperial College, London, SW7 2AZ United Kingdom
AU: Reme, H
EM: Henri.Reme@cesr.fr
AF: CESR, BP4346, 9 avenue du Colonel Roche, Toulouse, 31028 France
AB: The phenomenon called flux transfer events (FTEs) is widely accepted as the manifestation of time-dependent reconnection. In this paper, we present an observational evidence of a flux transfer event observed simultaneously at low-latitude by Polar and high-latitude by Cluster. This event occurred on March 21, 2002, when both Cluster and Polar were located near the local noon but with large latitudinal distance. Cluster was moving outbound from polar cusp to the magnetosheath, and Polar was in the magnetosheath near the equatorial magnetopause. The observations show that a flux transfer event was formed between the equator and the northern cusp. Polar and Cluster observed the FTE's two open flux tubes: Polar saw the southward moving flux tube near the equator; and Cluster the northward moving flux tube at high latitude. Unlike low-latitude FTEs, the high-latitude FTE did not exhibit the characteristic bi-polar BN signature. But the plasma data clearly showed its open flux tube configuration. Enhanced electric field fluctuations were observed within the FTE core, both at low- and high-attitudes. This event provides us a unique opportunity to understand high-latitude FTE signatures and the nature of time-varying reconnection.
DE: 2723 Magnetic reconnection (7526, 7835)
DE: 2724 Magnetopause and boundary layers
SC: SPA-Magnetospheric Physics [SM]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005