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NONLINEAR WAVE
AND PLASMA
STRUCTURES IN
THE AURORAL
AND SUBAURORAL
GEOSPACE
EVGENY V. MISHIN
Air Force Research Laboratory, Space Vehicles Directorate, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
ANATOLY V. STRELTSOV
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Department of Physical Sciences, Daytona Beach, Florida, United States
Elsevier
Radarweg 29, PO Box 211, 1000 AE Amsterdam, Netherlands
The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1GB, United Kingdom
50 Hampshire Street, 5th Floor, Cambridge, MA 02139, United States
From smart watches and cell phones to purpose driving research in this field is,
GPS satellites, humanity increasingly relies therefore, to identify possible effects of space
on the ability of modern gadgets to exchange storms, to understand and to predict storm
information via electromagnetic waves. The development from the Sun to the ground,
quality of such communication links, how- and then to develop methods to mitigate
ever, depends on the propagation character- those effects. The Sun is the ultimate energy
istics of the near-Earth plasma environment, source of space weather. Ground-based and
which is frequently not at equilibrium. In onboard sensors monitor the Sun to detect
particular, plasma irregularities occurring in the onset of coronal mass ejections (CMEs),
the ionosphere during space storms cause when billions of tons of the hot solar plasma
severe distortion of wave trajectories, leading are ejected into interplanetary space and
to the interruption of communication and create a shock wave moving from the Sun at
navigation. Enhanced fluxes of MeV, so- a speed greatly exceeding that of an undis-
called “killer” electrons forming the Earth’s turbed solar wind.
radiation belts, strike spacecraft, thereby CMEs are manifested by sharply intensi-
shortening their lifetime. These phenomena fied optical (solar flare), radio, and X-ray
represent just a fraction of the Sun-driven radiation. The radiation covers the distance
space weather affecting technological sys- between the Sun and the Earth (1 AU z 150
tems in near-Earth space. The self-explana- million kilometers) in about 500 seconds,
tory term “space weather” remains in use whereas the shocks approach the Earth in
since the space era began. about 1e2 days. The shock arrival at the
Humankind will probably never have magnetosphere’s boundary, the magneto-
control of space weather. The main practical pause, leads to an abrupt compression of the
FIGURE 0.1 Artist’s not-to-scale illustration of a Space Weather event: Coronal Mass Ejection manifested by a
solar flare (white light) creates a shock wave moving toward the Earth’s magnetosphere. Source: NASA www.
sunearthplan.net/3/inter.
vii
viii PREFACE
1
Introduction: near-Earth space
environment
The near-Earth space can be defined as the region where the solar wind magnetic field and
plasma interact with the magnetic field and plasma supplied by the Earth. It starts at the dis-
tance w10e12 RE toward the Sun and extends to >100 RE in the direction from the Sun. It
consists of several large, distinctive regions, which, in turn, contain smaller regions with
different parameters of the plasma and the magnetic field, and as a result, with different
dominant wave and particle processes. In that sense, the near-Earth space is similar to a
Russian “Matryoshka” doll or Chinese Boxes, where smaller objects are nested inside the
larger ones.
Fig. 1.1 depicts five main regions in the near-Earth space: (1) Bow Shock, (2) Magneto-
sheath, (3) Cusps, (4) Magnetosphere, and (5) Ionosphere. Each of these regions has its own
subregions, with different parameters of the plasma and the magnetic field. For example,
the integral parts of the Magnetosphere are the Magnetotail, Plasmasheet, and Plasmasphere.
In the Magnetotail, we distinguish the Mantle, Lobes, and Current sheet. In the plasmasphere,
which contains mainly a dense cold plasma, corotating with the Earth, two energetic particle
populations deserve special attention. One of these populations is radiation belt particles, and
the other is ring current particles.
Let us discuss these regions in some detail.
Nonlinear Wave and Plasma Structures in the Auroral and Subauroral Geospace
https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-820760-4.00001-6 1 © 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
2 1. Introduction: near-Earth space environment
FIGURE 1.1 Near-Earth space environment and magnetospheric currents. From the internet.
the location where the supersonic flow interacts with the Earth’s magnetosphere. This is the
bow shock.
1.2 Magnetosheath
This is a region between the bow shock and the Earth’s magnetosphere. Here, the transi-
tion from the interplanetary magnetic field carried by the solar wind to the magnetic field
generated inside the Earth occurs. The plasma in the magnetosheath is the postshock solar
wind plasma of the density n z 5 cm3 and Te z Te z 10 eV.
These are two narrow, funnel-like regions in the Northern and Southern hemispheres
where the solar wind plasma can penetrate to low altitudes up to the ionosphere due to
the dipole geometry of the Earth’s magnetic field (Smith and Lockwood, 1996).
1.4 Magnetosphere 3
1.4 Magnetosphere
This is a part of the near-Earth space with primarily the magnetic dipole field although
disguised by the interaction with the solar wind (e.g., Bagenal, 1985). The magnetosphere
is normally divided into the dayside magnetosphere and the magnetotail. The boundary
separating the magnetosphere from the magnetosheath is called a magnetopause. Technically
speaking, this is the boundary around the dayside magnetosphere and the magnetotail, but
more often, it is used to specify the boundary between the magnetosheath and the dayside
magnetosphere (Paschmann, 1979; Russel, 1981).
One of the main parameters describing the dayside magnetopause is the so-called standoff
distance, which defines the distance from the center of the Earth to the subsolar point where
the magnetopause is supposed to be. This distance is calculated from a pressure balance be-
tween the dynamic pressure in the solar wind, rSW u2SW , and the magnetic field pressure inside
the magnetosphere, B2 2m0 . Basically, it is assumed that the magnetic field in the solar wind is
weak (usually, BSW z 4e8 nT near the Earth), and the pressure in the solar wind is due to the
dynamic pressure only. Inside the magnetosphere, the plasma is relatively cold, stationary,
and diluted, and the pressure there is due to the magnetic field only. If we assume that the
magnetic field inside the dayside magnetosphere is dipole, then the magnitude of this field
in the equatorial plane is B ¼ BE ðRE =rÞ3 , where r is the geocentric distance, RE ¼ 6371.2 km
is the radius of the Earth, and BE ¼ 3.2 105 T. In this case, the equation defining the dis-
tance to the magnetopause in the subsolar point from the center of the Earth, rMP , is
1=6
B2E
rMP ¼ RE (1.1)
2m0 rSW u2SW
For “typical” parameters of the solar wind, usw ¼ 400 km/s, mi ¼ mp ¼ 1.67 1027 kg,
and n ¼ 6 cm3, this distance is rMP z8RE , which is less than the average distance to the
magnetopause observed by satellites in the subsolar region. This value can be corrected by
considering effects from the ChapmaneFerraro currents flowing around the dayside magne-
tosphere. These currents will be described shortly in this chapter. Here, we just note that they
originate from the magnetic curvature and gradient drift motion of the particles in the solar
wind facing the strong magnetic field on the magnetosphere. The resulting current flows in
the ecliptic plane from dawn to dusk producing a magnetic field, which increases the mag-
netic field inside the magnetosphere and decreases it outside the magnetopause.
If the magnitude of the magnetic field produced by the ChapmaneFerraro current is equal
to the magnitude of the field outside the magnetopause, then it will cancel the magnetic field
outside and double it inside. In this case, to calculate the distance to the magnetopause, one
should use B0E ¼ 2BE in Eq. (1.1) instead of BE , and the resulting expression for rMP is
1=6
B2E
rMP ¼ 21=3 RE (1.2)
2m0 rSW u2SW
Now, rMP z10RE for the same typical parameters of the solar wind, and this value corre-
sponds to the observations.
4 1. Introduction: near-Earth space environment
1.4.1 Magnetotail
Plasma Mantle. This is the region of the magnetosphere adjacent to the magnetopause.
Here, the plasma density is z 0.1e1.0 cm3 and Te z 100 eV.
Tail Lobes. Northern and southern lobes of the magnetotail extend downstream from
the Earth to >200 RE. Magnetic field lines in the lobes are nearly parallel to each other
and the strength of the magnetic field is z 20 nT. The plasma density here is very low,
z 0.01 cm3, Te z 100 eV, and Ti z 1 keV. This region of the magnetotail maps along the
magnetic field to the polar cap and provides a spatially homogeneous “polar rain” of elec-
trons with energies of a few hundred eV into the ionosphere.
Plasmasheet. This is a central part of the magnetosphere. In the nightside magnetosphere, it
separates two tail lobes. The magnetic field in the nightside of the plasmasheet is weaker than
in the lobes. The field is supposed to be near zero in the most central part of the nightside
plasmasheet where the reconnection occurs. In the part of the plasmasheet closer to the Earth,
the magnetic field lines are “closed,” and this region maps by the magnetic field to the auroral
oval in the high-latitude ionosphere. The average plasma density in the plasmasheet
is z 0.3e1.0 cm3, Te z 0.5e1.0 keV, and Ti z 3.0e6.0 keV. The magnetic field here is
weaker than in the lobes and the plasma is denser than the plasma in the lobes.
Boundary Layers. Two additional subregions in the magnetotail deserving special attention
are the plasmasheet boundary layer and the low-latitude boundary layer (LLBL). They are
shown in Fig. 1.1. These layers represent narrow transition regions, where parameters of
the plasma change significantly over a relatively short distance leading to strong transverse
gradients in plasma density, temperature, and velocity. These gradients cause the develop-
ment of the hydrodynamics instabilities (e.g., KelvineHelmholtz instability in LLBL), which
affect the electromagnetic dynamics of the magnetosphere.
1.4.2 Plasmasphere
The plasmasphere consists of a torus of relatively cold and dense plasma of ionospheric
origin corotating with the Earth. Here, n > 100 cm3 and Te z Ti z 1 eV. The period of the
plasmasphere rotation around the Earth is z 26 h or w10% longer than the period of the
Earth’s rotation. The plasmasphere is bounded in the radial direction by a sharp, well-
defined boundary called the plasmapause. During quiet geomagnetic conditions, the plasma-
pause locates on the magnetic field lines that map down to z60 degrees magnetic latitude.
The characteristic scale size of the plasmapause in the radial direction can be in the range
0.01e0.1 RE, and the plasma density changes over this distance from <10 cm3 outside the
plasmasphere to >100 cm3 inside (Carpenter and Anderson, 1992; Lui and Hamilton, 1992).
The plasmasphere also contains several populations of energetic particles which normally
are considered separately. These populations include particles forming radiation belts and
carrying ring current.
1.5 Ionosphere
The ionosphere is a partially ionized gas occupying the range of altitudes from 80 to
2000 km above the Earth. Some books suggest considering this gas as a plasma and some
do not. The reason for that discrepancy is that the density of the neutral atmospheric particles
in the main regions of the ionosphere (<400 km) is 100e1000 times higher than the density of
the charged particles, which makes collisions with neutrals and electrochemical reactions be-
tween different species very important participants of the ionospheric processes. Excellent re-
view of physics and chemistry of the ionosphere is given by Schunk (1983), Schunk and Nagy
(2004), and Kelley (2009).
The midlatitude ionosphere is mostly produced by the photoionization of the neutral at-
mosphere by EUV and X-ray radiation from the Sun. Two other important production mech-
anisms are (1) the impact ionization of neutrals by superthermal electrons and (2) charge
exchange. The dissociative and radiative recombination balances the ionization and creates
a dynamically stable configuration of charged particles with some averaged values of the
main parameters.
Tables 1.1e1.3 list some of the major reactions used in photochemical models, with the re-
action rate coefficients from Grubbs et al. (2018), unless noted. As common, we denote the
excited state of nitrogen, N(2D), as N# and si,n ¼ Ti,n (K)/300.
6 1. Introduction: near-Earth space environment
2 Oþ þ
2 þ NO/NO þ O2 4:1 1010 7 N2þ þ O/Oþ þ N2 1011 si0:23 at si < 5
3 Oþ þ
2 þ N2 /NO þ NO 5 1016 8 Oþ þ NO/NOþ þ O 1013 6:4 1:3si þ 0:8s2i :::
at si < 13
4 N2þ þ O2 /Oþ
2 þ N2 5 1011 si0:8 9 þ
O þ N2 /NO þ N þ
1012 1:7 0:7si þ 0:13s2i :::
at si < 12
5 N2þ þ NO/NO þ N2 þ
7:5 109 Tn0:52 10 O þ þ
O2 /Oþ
2 þO 1011 2:8 0:7si þ 0:08s2i :::
at si < 16
FIGURE 1.2 (A) The average structure of the ionosphere. (B) The electron density in the nighttime ionosphere at
various geographic latitudes. Adapted from (A) Jursa, A.S., 1985, Handbook of Geophysics and Space Environment, AFRL,
National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA 22161. (B) Titheridge, J., 2003. Ionization below the night F2 layerda
global model. J. Atm. Solar-Terr. Phys. 65, 1035e1052. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1364-6826(03)00136-6.
8 1. Introduction: near-Earth space environment
Because the main energy source for the ionospheric production is the radiation from the
Sun, the ionosphere demonstrates a strong temporal variability depending on the position
and intensity of the Sun. Thus, the density of the ionosphere at noon is more than 10 times
larger than the density in the same location during local midnight. The daytime density of
the ionosphere during the solar maxima can be 10 times more than the daytime density dur-
ing the solar minima. Moreover, the nighttime F2-region density during the solar maxima can
be more than the daytime density during the solar minima.
The amount of solar radiation used to ionize the neutrals also depends on the latitude, and
therefore, the ionosphere at low and middle latitudes is “denser” than the ionosphere at high
latitudes. At the same time, at high latitudes (particularly, in the auroral zone), the precipi-
tation of energetic electrons from the plasmasheet is an important source of the ionization.
This source strongly depends on the geomagnetic activity in the magnetotail (e.g., sub-
storms). As a result, the ionospheric density can be very high in the auroral zone and change
significantly over relatively short time intervals and spatial scales.
dvs
ms ¼ qs ðE þ vs BÞ ms ns ðvs vN Þ (1.3)
dt
Here, index s indicates the species of the charged particles (e for electrons and i for ions), nS
is the collision frequency between species s and neutrals, and yN is the velocity of the neutrals.
Let us consider electrons moving without acceleration ðd =dt h0Þ parallel to the magnetic
field ðve jjBÞ or without any magnetic field ðB ¼ 0Þ. Also let us assume that neutrals are sta-
tionary ðvN ¼ 0Þ. In this case, Eq. (1.3) gives
m e ne me ne me ne 1
E¼ ve ¼ 2 neve ¼ je ¼ j: (1.4)
e ne ne 2 sjje e
Here, sjje ¼ ne2 me ne is the parallel electron conductivity. The total parallel conductivity,
sjj , includes a contribution from electrons and ions. In the plasma consisting of electrons and
one species of ions only, it is
1 1
sjj ¼ sjje þ sjji ¼ ne2 þ (1.5)
m e n e m i vi
1.5 Ionosphere 9
If the plasma consists of multiple ion species with different masses and charges, then the
parallel conductivity is
ne2 Xni q2
sjj ¼ þ i
(1.6)
me ne i
mi n i
P
Here, index i marks different ion species and n ¼ i ni .
If one will consider electrons moving without acceleration ðd =dt h0Þ under some angle to
the background magnetic field, and assume that neutrals are stationary ðvN ¼ 0Þ, then Eq.
(1.3) gives
m e ne m e ne 1
E¼ ve ve B ¼ j þ j B (1.7)
e ne2 e ne e
me n e m e ve B m e ne B
Ez ¼ jez ; Ex ¼ jex þ jey ; Ey ¼ jey jex (1.8)
ne2 ne 2 ne ne 2 ne
or
Here,
n2e ne uce
sPe ¼ sjje and sHe ¼ sjje (1.10)
n2e þ u2ce n2e þ u2ce
The relations between the electric field and the total current carried by the electrons and
multiple ion species can be obtained in a similar way:
jz ¼ sjj Ez ; jx ¼ sP Ex sH Ey ; jy ¼ sP Ey þ sH Ex (1.11)
Here, sjj is given by Eq. (1.6), sP is called Pedersen conductivity, and sH is called Hall
conductivity
The relation between the current and the electric field in the ionosphere in the matrix form is
0 1
sp sH 0
!
! B C
j ¼ s ,E; where s ¼ B @ sH sp 0C A (1.13)
0 0 sjj
10 1. Introduction: near-Earth space environment
The Pedersen conductivity is responsible for the Pedersen currents flowing in the iono-
sphere in the direction of the electric field. This current is carried mostly by ions. It causes
dissipation of the electric field energy in the ionosphere and the ionospheric heating. The
Hall conductivity is responsible for the Hall current flowing in the ionosphere in the direction
perpendicular to the electric field and mostly carried by electrons.
Both conductivities result from the fact that collisions with neutrals demagnetize ions in
the ionosphere, and they start to move in the direction of the electric field instead of partici-
pating in the E B drift. Electrons remain magnetized, and they continue to move perpendic-
ular to E with the velocity of the electric drift. Thus, collisions effectively separate electrons
from ions, the ions carry Pedersen current in the direction of the electric field, and the elec-
trons carry Hall currents in the direction perpendicular to E.
The Hall and Pedersen currents arise from the peculiarities of the electric drift motion
in the collisional media. They both depend on the orientation of the background magnetic
and electric field relative to each other. These fields are oriented differently at high and
low latitudes. At high latitudes, the magnetic field has a large angle with the ionosphere
and with the electric field produced in the ionosphere. At low latitudes, the magnetic field
in the southenorth direction is parallel to the ionosphere and, if there is an electric field in
the eastewest direction in the ionosphere, then the E B drift pushes electrons in the ver-
tical direction and creates a vertical component of the electric field. By considering the
contribution from this field, one can get the relation between the eastewest electric field
and current in the ionosphere, jEW ¼ sC EEW , where sC ¼ sP þ s2H sP is called Cowling
conductivity.
Fig. 1.3 shows “typical” profiles of sP , sH , and sC with an altitude reproduced from Jursa
(1985). It should be noticed here that all three conductivities are proportional to the plasma
density in the ionosphere, particularly in the D and E regions, as well as on the temperature of
electrons and ions. This fact has been used in many active ionospheric experiments based on
changing ionospheric conductivity by heating electrons in the D and E regions with HF
waves produced by powerful ground transmitters, like the High-frequency Active Auroral
Research Program (HAARP) facility in Gakona, Alaska.
Interactions between the plasma and magnetic field carried by the solar wind with plasma
and the magnetic field of the Earth’s origin distort the dipole geometry of the Earth’s mag-
netic field, and these distortions of the magnetic field generate a system of electric currents
threading different near-Earth space regions. The interactive visualization of the currents in
the near-Earth space is shown on the website http://meted.ucar.edu/hao/aurora/txt/x_
m_3_1.php. These currents include dayside magnetosphere or ChapmaneFerraro currents,
nightside magnetosphere or tail currents, cross-tail or neutral sheet current, ring current,
field-aligned or Birkeland currents, and the ionospheric currents, as depicted in Figs. 1.1
and 1.4. Let us consider those in some detail.
• Dayside Magnetosphere or ChapmaneFerraro Currents. These currents occur on the
dayside magnetopause. They are carried by the solar wind particles experiencing the
magnetic field curvature and gradient drifts. Both these drifts cause the motion of
the electrons and ions in opposite directions and produce electric current flowing in the
1.6 Electric currents 11
FIGURE 1.3 Example of distribution of Pedersen (sP), Hall (sH), and Cowling (sC) conductivities with altitude.
In general, these conductivities depend on the plasma density and temperature. Adapted from Jursa, A.S., 1985,
Handbook of Geophysics and Space Environment, AFRL, National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA 22161.
eastward direction in the ecliptic plane on the magnetopause. This current increases
the Earth’s magnetic field inside the magnetopause and decreases it outside. This effect
is consistent with a simple physical picture of solar wind compressing the magneto-
sphere on the dayside and increasing the magnetic field inside.
• Nightside Magnetosphere or Tail Current. This is a system of two “solenoid-like” currents
flowing around the magnetotail. The currents are the result of the geometry of the mag-
netic field in the tail, which is described by almost uniform and almost parallel magnetic
field lines. Because the magnetic field in the southern magnetosphere is pointing from the
Earth, and in the northern magnetosphere, it is pointing toward the Earth; the currents
around the southern and northern parts of the tail should flow in opposite directions.
• Cross Tail or Neutral Sheet Current. This current flows across the tail through the
neutral sheet providing the closure of the northern and southern tail currents.
Field-Aligned or Birkeland Currents. Field-aligned currents, named after their discoverer
Birkeland currents, are different from other currents in the magnetosphere in several
ways. First, they are carried mostly by the electrons traveling along the ambient magnetic
field and originated from polarization charges at plasma boundaries and often driven by a
parallel voltage between the ionosphere and equatorial magnetosphere (e.g., Arnoldy,
1974). There exist several possible mechanisms producing potential drops with different
spatial characteristics and temporal behavior (Baumjohann, 1982; Lyons, 1992). It is com-
mon to distinguish large-scale, quasi-stationary Region 1 and 2 currents (Iijima and
Potemra, 1978) and small-scale currents carried by Alfvén waves.
12 1. Introduction: near-Earth space environment
FIGURE 1.4 (A) A schematic illustration of the global magnetospheric current system in the Northern Hemi-
sphere: Region 1 and 2 currents, the magnetopause (ChapmaneFerraro, black), partial ring current (black dashed),
and the Pedersen currents (green). Red/blue lines indicate upward/downward current regions in the polar region
and Region 1 and 2 currents. (B) A global view of Region 1 and Region 2 currents. (C) Ionospheric closure of the field-
aligned currents. Adapted from (A) Carter, J., Milan, S., Coxon, J., Walach, M.-T., Anderson, B., 2016. Average field-aligned
current configuration parameterized by solar wind conditions. J. Geophys. Res. Space Phys. 121, 1294e1307. https://doi.org/10.
1002/2015JA021567. (B, C) Pictures from the website http://meted.ucar.edu/hao/aurora/txt/x_m_3_1.php.
o Large-Scale, Region 1 and Region 2 Currents. The current system connecting the magne-
topause (and the solar wind) with the polar ionosphere is called the Region 1 current
system. The poleward boundary of R1 currents coincides with the polar cap boundary.
This region is z 100e200 km wide and the current density of this current is z 1 mA/m2.
The current system connecting the inner boundary of the plasmasheet with the equator-
ward part of the auroral ionosphere and the ring current with the subauroral ionosphere
is called the Region 2 current system.
o Small-Scale Alfvénic Currents. Ultra-low-frequency shear Alfvén waves, generated in
the magnetosphere by coupling between shear and fast MHD waves or waveeparticle
interactions, or by the different sources in the ionosphere, carry field-aligned currents
playing an important role in the exchange of the mass, energy, and momentum between
1.8 Magnetosphere-ionosphere (MI) coupling 13
the ionosphere and the magnetosphere. These current systems have transverse sizes in
the ionosphere z10e100 km and oscillate with frequencies 0.5e100 mHz. Satellite and
ground-based observations suggest that these currents are closely related to the bright,
discrete auroral arcs, and other nonluminous wave and plasma phenomena in the
auroral and subauroral ionosphere.
Ionospheric Currents. The Pedersen and Hall currents are two main currents in the lower
ionosphere. They are localized in the ionospheric D and E regions, where the corresponding
Hall and Pedersen conductivities maximize. Fig. 1.4C show a schematic plot of these currents
in the ionosphere.
o Pedersen Current. The Pedersen current flows in the direction of the electric field in the
ionosphere. It is carried mainly by the bulk ions due to ion-neutral collisions that
demagnetize ions. That is, collisions disrupt ion gyrorotation around the magnetic field
thus making ions move in the direction of the electric field instead of E B drift.
o Hall Current. The Hall current flows in the direction of the E B drift. It is carried
mainly by the bulk electrons in the altitude range where ions are demagnetized but
electrons remain magnetized.
FIGURE 1.5 (Top) Examples of auroral displays: (A) Corona and (B) rayed arcs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Aurora). (Bottom) Ultraviolet (UV) image from the Polar satellite over the Northern Hemisphere. (Top) From Mishin,
E., 2019. Artificial Aurora experiments and application to natural aurora. Front. Astron. Space Sci. 6, 14. https://doi.org/10.
3389/fspas.2019.00014. (Bottom) From http://eiger.physics.uiowa.edu/wvis/examples.
can produce very similar observational effects, and the same physical mechanism can pro-
duce very different observational effects under different conditions. Fig. 1.6 (courtesy of
Joe Grebowsky, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center) illustrates geophysical processes man-
ifesting coupling between different regions in the terrestrial magnetosphere, ionosphere, and
atmosphere.
Ultra-low-frequency (ULF) shear Alfvén waves and field-aligned currents carried by those
are the main participants in the electromagnetic coupling between the ionosphere and
magnetosphere in the auroral and subauroral zones. One of the main mechanisms demon-
strating the importance of magnetosphereeionosphere coupling for understanding the origin
and dynamics of intense ULF waves, currents, and density structures is the active feedback
from the density disturbances in the ionosphere on the structure and amplitude of the magne-
tospheric, field-aligned currents causing these disturbances.
The basic idea of this mechanism is that the ULF field-aligned current interacting with the
ionosphere changes the ionospheric conductivity by precipitating or removing electrons in the
E region, and these variations in the conductivity “feedback” on the structure and amplitude of
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