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Day‐to‐day variability in the thermosphere and its impact on plasmasphere refilling
Author(s) -
Krall J.,
Emmert J. T.,
Sassi F.,
McDonald S. E.,
Huba J. D.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: space physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-9402
pISSN - 2169-9380
DOI - 10.1002/2015ja022328
Subject(s) - thermosphere , exosphere , plasmasphere , atmospheric sciences , ionosphere , atmosphere (unit) , environmental science , atmospheric models , climatology , meteorology , geology , physics , geophysics , plasma , magnetosphere , ion , quantum mechanics
Satellite drag data showing significant (20%) short‐term variations in atmospheric mass density are presented. These data, along with the Naval Research Laboratory SAMI3 (Sami3 is Also a Model of the Ionosphere) ionosphere/plasmasphere model and the WACCM (Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model) atmosphere model are used to estimate day‐to‐day variability in thermosphere composition, thermosphere winds, and exosphere temperatures and the effect of this variability on plasmasphere refilling rates. This assessment is guided by SAMI3 modeling showing that modest (20%) decreases in thermospheric density and exospheric temperature can lead to large (60%) increases in plasmaspheric refilling rates and that changes in the thermospheric wind pattern can have a similar effect. Results suggest that day‐to‐day variability in thermospheric wind and composition could affect plasmaspheric refilling rates by 50 to 100%.