Magnetospheric Density and Pressure in Equilibrium and Dynamic Models

Dartmouth College, Hanover NH

Investigators

Abstract

This project will utilize data taken from the plasma wave data from the IMAGE spacecraft to develop a database of electron density as a function of time and position in the magnetosphere. That database will then be used to create realistic 3-D models of the Earth's plasmasphere. The plasmasphere model will then be used to simulate Pi2 wave events using Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations. The pressure in the plasmasphere can be anisotropic, a condition that cannot be easily incorporated into MHD simulations. The project will therefore use hybrid code simulations (fully kinetic, particle simulations of the ions and a fluid approximation for the electrons) to investigate the anisotropic pressure evolution and the heat flux that flows parallel to the magnetic field. The final step in the project is to develop a global MHD code that can incorporate the effects of anisotropic pressure in a self-consistent manner.