SM51C-2577
High-resolution Multi-instrument Observations of Ion Outflows in the Topside Ionosphere on the Enhanced Polar Outflow Probe (e-POP)
Friday, 18 December 2015
Poster Hall (Moscone South)
Andrew W Yau1, Leroy L. Cogger1, Andrew David Howarth1, H. Gordon James2, Kathryn A McWilliams3, David M Miles4, Gareth William Perry1 and William K Peterson5, (1)University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada, (2)Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, ON, Canada, (3)University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada, (4)University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada, (5)University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States
Abstract:
The high measurement resolution capability of the Enhanced Polar Outflow Probe (e-POP) instrument suite (up to ~150 samples/sec) onboard the polar-orbiting Canadian CASSIOPE satellite (325 × 1500 km; 81° inclination) provides the first opportunity to investigate the dynamic structures of ion up-flows and outflows in the topside ionosphere and associated auroral and wave-particle interaction processes, at different magnetic local times and down to sub-km scale. We present observations in selected quiet- and storm-time e-POP orbits, including orbits in close conjunction with DMSP and/or the SuperDARN radar, and including data from the low-energy imaging ion mass spectrometer, fast auroral imager, radio receiver instrument, fluxgate magnetometer, and suprathermal electron imager. The observed features include localized regions of enhanced ion up-flows or down-flows down to the F-region within the aurora; the persistence of non-negligible up-flows at quiet times; the larger-than-expected fluxes of atomic and molecular nitrogen ions; and “polar-wind” H+ion flow on closed auroral field lines co-existing with auroral bulk flows below DMSP altitudes. We will discuss the implications of these features on magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling and magnetospheric ion composition.
