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Observational signatures of nonlinear magnetotail particle dynamics
Author(s) -
Chen James,
Burkhart Grant R.,
Huang Cheryl Y.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/gl017i012p02237
Subject(s) - quiet , physics , plasma sheet , nonlinear system , current sheet , scaling , distribution function , satellite , magnetic field , computational physics , resonance (particle physics) , particle (ecology) , magnetosphere , classical mechanics , geophysics , atomic physics , magnetohydrodynamics , geology , geometry , quantum mechanics , astronomy , mathematics , oceanography
It has been predicted that the nonlinear particle dynamics in the magnetotail leads to a class of resonance structures in the quiet‐time ion distribution functions in the Central Plasma Sheet. These structures exhibit a scaling law of . In this letter, we report the first identification of such a scaling law in quiet‐time CPS distribution functions obtained aboard ISEE 1. We propose a method which uses the observed resonance structures to determine the quiet‐time current sheet thickness based on a measurement of the distribution function and magnetic field obtained by one satellite.