Theoretical and Observational Studies of the Ionosphere- Plasmasphere-Ring Current System

本项目将继续研究能量在环流和电离层中的传输和沉积，包括：(1)磁尾流对Dst指数的贡献，(2)超致密等离子体片对最强烈环流形成的重要性，(3)磁层内部能量输入与上游太阳风密度之间的关系，(4)大磁暴期间产生强烈中纬度离子降水的物理过程。(5)在大风暴期间，磁力线的延长、第一绝热不变量的破坏和强烈的亚极光离子降水之间的关系；(6)在大风暴的主要阶段，日侧磁层顶的流出对环电流能量平衡的影响；(7)电磁离子回旋波相互作用对环电流降水损失的影响。(8)内磁层超热离子群的主要来源和汇，它们在L值和地方时的分布，它们与磁暴和扰动条件下热离子加热的关系。PI将研究这些基本的物理过程，强调环电流能量通过热量和粒子通量耦合到电离层，以及太阳风和磁层条件变化对这种耦合的影响。

This project continues studying the transport and deposition of energy in the ring current and underlying ionosphere, including (1) the contribution of magnetotail currents to the Dst index, (2) the importance of superdense plasma sheets to the formation of the most intense ring currents, (3) the relationship between energy input into the inner magnetosphere and upstream solar wind density, (4) the physical processes producing intense midlatitude ion precipitation during large magnetic storms, and the role of this precipitation in ring current decay, (5) the association between stretched magnetic field lines, violation of the first adiabatic invariant and intense subauroral ion precipitation during major storms, (6) the effects of outflow at the dayside magnetopause on ring current energy balance during the main phases of large storms, (7) the impact of electromagnetic ion cyclotron wave interactions in producing precipitation loss from the ring current, redistributing energy between ring current ion species and channeling ring current energy into the thermal populations of the inner magnetosphere, and (8) the major sources and sinks of suprathermal ion populations in the inner magnetosphere, their distribution in L value and local time, their relationship to magnetic storms and to the heating of thermal ions during disturbed conditions. The PI will investigate these fundamental physical processes, emphasizing the coupling of ring current energy into the underlying ionosphere by heat and particle fluxes, and the affect of changing solar wind and magnetospheric conditions on this coupling.