HR: 11:15h
AN: SM52A-04    [Abstracts]
TI: Comparison of the Current Sheet Thickness as Determined Using Nonlinear Dynamics Modeling and Cluster Measurements
AU: * Holland, D
EM: holland@phy.ilstu.edu
AF: Illinois State University, Department of Physics, Normal, IL 61790-4560 United States
AU: Ansher, J
EM: ansher@phy.ilstu.edu
AF: Illinois State University, Department of Physics, Normal, IL 61790-4560 United States
AU: Martin, R
EM: rfm@phy.ilstu.edu
AF: Illinois State University, Department of Physics, Normal, IL 61790-4560 United States
AU: Jhaveri, V
EM: vjhaver@ilstu.edu
AF: Illinois State University, Department of Physics, Normal, IL 61790-4560 United States
AU: Matsuoka, H
EM: hmb@phy.ilstu.edu
AF: Illinois State University, Department of Physics, Normal, IL 61790-4560 United States
AB: Computer simulations of nonlinear charged particle dynamics in magnetotail like magnetic fields have pointed towards the existence of an ion distribution function signature that manifests itself as a serried of peaks and valleys. The separation of the peaks has been shown to scale as the fourth root of the normalized energy, where the normalization in turn depends on the parameters that describe the magnetic field structure, i.e. the current sheet half-thickness and the ratio of the magnetic field strength at the mid-plane to the asymptotic magnetic field strength. Using ion distributions functions and magnetic field data from the GEOTAIL spacecraft, it has been shown that this signature may be used to determine the quiet-time (Kp < 2-) current sheet thickness. Recently we have completed a survey of the current sheet structure in the region -100R_E < X_GSE< -20 R_E. and found that the current sheet structure in remarkably constant throughput the entire region with a scale length of approximately 0.8 R_E . In this paper, we compare the thickness measured by using nonlinear dynamics modeling with that made by direct measurements of the thickness using the four Cluster satellites in the vicinity of X_GSE= -20 RE. This effectively serves as a benchmark for the veracity of the nonlinear modeling methodology.
DE: 2744 Magnetotail
DE: 2764 Plasma sheet
DE: 2794 Instruments and techniques
DE: 3220 Nonlinear dynamics
DE: 7839 Nonlinear phenomena
SC: SPA-Magnetospheric Physics [SM]
MN: 2005 Joint Assembly