SM41F-2551
Generation and effects of EMIC waves observed by the Van Allen Probes on 18 March 2013
Thursday, 17 December 2015
Poster Hall (Moscone South)
Jichun Zhang1, Anthony Saikin2, Konstantin V Gamayunov3, Harlan E. Spence1, Brian Larsen4, Reeves Geoffrey5, Charles William Smith2, Roy B Torbert2, William S Kurth6 and Craig Kletzing6, (1)University of New Hampshire Main Campus, Space Science Center, Durham, NH, United States, (2)University of New Hampshire Main Campus, Durham, NH, United States, (3)Florida Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, Melbourne, FL, United States, (4)The New Mexico Consortium, Los Alamos, NM, United States, (5)Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States, (6)University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, United States
Abstract:
Electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves play a crucial role in particle dynamics in the Earth’s magnetosphere. The free energy for EMIC wave generation is usually provided by the temperature anisotropy of the energetic ring current ions. EMIC waves can in turn cause particle energization and losses through resonant wave-particle interactions. Using measurements from the Van Allen Probes, we perform a case study of EMIC waves and associated plasma conditions observed on 18 March 2013. From 0204 to 0211 UT, the Van Allen Probe-B detected He+-band EMIC wave activity in the post-midnight sector (MLT=4.6-4.9) at very low L-shells (L=2.6-2.9). The event occurred right outside the inward-pushed plasmapause in the early recovery phase of an intense geomagnetic storm – min. Dst = -132 nT at 2100 UT on 17 March 2013. During this event, the fluxes of energetic (> 1 keV), anisotropic O+ dominate both the H+ and He+ fluxes in this energy range. Meanwhile, O+ fluxes at low energies (< 0.1 keV) are low compared to H+ and He+ fluxes in the same energy range. The fluxes of <0.1 keV He+ are clearly enhanced during the wave event, indicating a signature of wave heating. To further confirm the association of the observed plasma features with the EMIC waves, we calculate the electron minimum resonant energy (Emin) and pitch angle diffusion coefficient (Dαα) of the EMIC wave packets by using nominal ion composition, derived total ion density from the frequencies of upper hybrid resonance, and measured ambient and wave magnetic field. EMIC wave growth rates are also calculated to evaluate the role of loss-cone distributed ring current ions in the EMIC wave generation.
