Geomagnetic activity as a reflection of processes in the magnetospheric tail: 2. Plasma convection model

A model of plasma convection in the magnetospheric tail was developed. Although highly simplified, the model adequately describes the main characteristics of the process. We have calculated the physical parameters characterizing the magnetotail, as well as described the convection of fluxtubes in it and the process of electron dropout. The model explains the semiannual variation in magnetic activity.     

基于Van Allen Probes EMFISIS波动仪器观测的内磁层上频带哨声合声波全球分布的统计分析

基于Van Allen Probes近三年的EMFISIS仪器波动观测数据,针对内磁层上频带哨声模合声波幅度的全球分布特性对地磁活动水平的依赖性进行了详细的统计分析,着重研究上频带合声波平均场强幅度随磁壳值（L）、磁地方时（MLT）、地磁纬度（MLAT）的分布特征及不同强度区间的合声波的发生概率.结果表明,上频带合声波的平均场强幅度与地磁活动条件密切相关,在强磁扰期,平均幅度可达到40 pT以上.在外辐射带中心区域（L=4~6）,上频带合声波的幅度最强;在L＜~3的区域,上频带磁层合声波没有分布.在夜侧至晨侧（22-09MLT）,上频带合声波幅度最强;在下午侧至昏侧（15-19MLT）,上频带合声波幅度最弱;日侧（10-14MLT）上频带合声波在不同地磁活动条件下都存在,幅度偏小.上频带合声波主要分布在|MLAT| < 10°,其中21-09MLT范围内、磁纬位于|MLAT| < 5°的平均场强幅度最强,磁扰期间可达约100 pT.另外,统计而言,中等幅度（10~30 pT）的上频带合声波在夜侧至晨侧（23-09MLT）靠近磁赤道区域的发生率最高,可达15%左右.强幅度（>30 pT）的上频带合声波普遍分布在夜侧（01-05MLT）,发生率最小.本文建立的上频带哨声模合声波的全球分布模型结合已经建立的下频带合声波的全球分布模型,将有助于进一步深入理解该重要磁层等离子体波动对地球等离子体片、辐射带、环电流动力学过程的定量贡献.

     

基于Van Allen Probes EMFISIS波动仪器观测的内磁层下频带哨声合声波全球分布的统计分析

基于Van Allen Probes近三年的EMFISIS仪器波动观测数据,对内磁层下频带哨声模合声波幅度的全球分布特性对地磁活动水平的依赖性进行了详细的统计分析,着重研究下频带合声波平均场强幅度随磁壳值L、磁地方时、地磁纬度的分布特征及不同强度区间的合声波的发生概率.结果表明,下频带合声波的波动强度与地磁活动密切正相关,处于强磁扰期间的合声波具有更大的振幅,其发生率与地磁活动强度具有同样的正相关特性.下频带合声波主要发生于午夜至下午的磁地方时区间,其余的磁地方时时段下频带合声波较弱.赤道面附近的下频带合声波主要分布在夜侧至黎明这一时段内,随着磁纬度的增加逐步向日侧扩展.下频带合声波在午夜侧（21-03 MLT）主要出现在15°的磁纬范围内,在晨侧（03-09 MLT）可以到达15°磁纬甚至更高纬度.下频带合声波主要发生于L=~4.5的附近区域.随着地磁活动的增加,下频带合声波所覆盖的L-shell空间区域增大,趋势为向高、低L值区域同时扩展.建立的下频带哨声合声波的全球分布模型将有助于进一步深入理解该重要磁层波动对辐射带电子的波粒作用散射效应和对辐射带动力学过程的定量贡献.

     

Nonstationary pearl pulsations as a signature of magnetospheric disturbances

We analyse long-lasting (several hours) Pc1 pearl pulsations with decreasing, increasing or constant central frequencies. We show that nonstationary pearl events (those with either decreasing or increasing central frequency) are observed simultaneously with increasing auroral magnetic activity at the nightside magnetosphere while the stationary events (constant central frequency) correspond to quiet magnetic conditions. Events with decreasing central frequency are observed mostly in the late morning and daytime whereas events with increasing central frequency appear either early in the morning or in the afternoon. We explain the diurnal distribution of the nonstationary pearl pulsations in terms of proton drifts depending on magnetic activity, and evaluate the magnetospheric electric field based on the variation of the central frequency of pearl pulsations.     

Simultaneous ionospheric and magnetospheric observations of azimuthally propagating transient features during substorms

During the 6^th August 1995, the CUTLASS Finland HF radar ran in a high time resolution mode, allowing measurements of line-of-sight convection velocities along a single beam with a temporal resolution of 14 s. Data from such scans, during the substorm expansion phase, revealed pulses of equatorward flow exceeding 600 m s^–1 with a duration of 5 min and a repetition period of 8 min. Each pulse of enhanced equatorward flow was preceded by an interval of suppressed flow and enhanced ionospheric Hall conductance. These transient features, which propagate eastwards away from local midnight, have been interpreted as ionospheric current vortices associated with fieldaligned current pairs. The present study reveals that these ionospheric convection features appear to have an accompanying signature in the magnetosphere, comprising a dawnward perturbation and dipolarisation of the magnetic field and dawnward plasma flow, measured in the geomagnetic tail by the Geotail spacecraft, located at L = 10 and some four hours to the east, in the postmidnight sector. These signatures are suggested to be the consequence of the observation of the same field aligned currents in the magnetosphere. Their possible relationship with bursty Earthward plasma flow and magnetotail reconnection is discussed.     

Geomagnetic activity as a reflection of processes in the magnetospheric tail: 1. The source of diurnal and semiannual variations in geomagnetic activity

Diurnal and semiannual variations in geomagnetic activity are considered. We prove that there exists an inner magnetospheric source of magnetic activity, which depends on the angle φ between the planes of the magnetotail plasma sheet and the geomagnetic equator. It is shown that diurnal and semiannual variations in magnetic activity result from changes in the value of this angle.     

2008年1月5日磁层亚暴期间磁尾近地重联事件的THEMIS观测与分析

本文主要应用THEMIS卫星的磁场和等离子体流观测数据,分析了2008年1月5日08∶51~08∶57 UT亚暴膨胀相期间磁尾的一个近地重联事件.在亚暴膨胀相期间,地面的全天空成像仪清楚地记录到了极光的极向扩展,THEMIS的P5卫星在地球同步轨道附近观测到了磁场的偶极化现象.在亚暴膨胀相末期的08∶51~08∶57 UT期间,P3(X_GSM~-9.12R_E) 和P4 (X_GSM ~-9.40R_E) 同时观测到了一对方向相反的高速等离子体流.这对方向相反的高速等离子体流是由磁尾的重联现象所引起.重联的位置被估计位于X_GSM ~-9.12R_E 和X_GSM~-9.40R_E之间较小的空间范围内.并且,在重联位置的两侧,重联的Hall效应被P3和P4两颗卫星观测到.因此,这一磁尾重联事件发生在距离地球非常近的空间范围内.     

Volcanic lightning: global observations and constraints on source mechanisms

Lightning and electrification at volcanoes are important because they represent a hazard in their own right, they are a component of the global electrical circuit, and because they contribute to ash particle aggregation and modification within ash plumes. The role of water substance (water in all forms) in particular has not been well studied. Here data are presented from a comprehensive global database of volcanic lightning. Lightning has been documented at 80 volcanoes in association with 212 eruptions. The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) could be determined for 177 eruptions. Eight percent of VEI = 3–5 eruptions have reported lightning, and 10% of VEI = 6, but less than 2% of those with VEI = 1–2. These findings suggest consistent reporting for larger eruptions but either less lightning or possible under-reporting for small eruptions. Ash plume heights (142 observations) show a bimodal distribution with main peaks at 7–12 km and 1–4 km. The former are similar to heights of typical thunderstorms and suggest involvement of water substance, whereas the latter suggest other factors contributing to electrical behavior closer to the vent. Reporting of lightning is more common at night (56%) and less common in daylight (44%). Reporting also varied substantially from year to year, suggesting that a more systematic observational strategy is needed. Several weak trends in lightning occurrence based on magma composition were found. The bimodal ash plume heights are obvious only for andesite to dacite; basalt and basaltic-andesite evenly span the range of heights; and rhyolites are poorly represented. The distributions of the latitudes of volcanoes with lightning and eruptions with lightning roughly mimic the distribution of all volcanoes, which is generally flat with latitude. Meteorological lightning, on the other hand, is common in the tropics and decreases markedly with increasing latitude as the ability of the atmosphere to hold water decreases poleward. This finding supports the idea that if lightning in large (deep) eruptions depends on water substance, then the origin of the water is primarily magma and not entrainment from the surrounding atmosphere. Seasonal effects show that more eruptions with lightning were reported in winter (bounded by the respective autumnal and vernal equinoxes) than in summer. This result also runs counter to the expectations based on entrainment of local water vapor.     

Estimations of the uncertainty in timing the relationship between magnetospheric and solar wind processes

We present here a statistical study quantifying the errors associated with the most commonly used methods for propagating discontinuities in the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) from an upstream monitor to the magnetosphere by the magnetospheric and ionospheric communities. The purpose of this paper is to show the quantified errors in the different techniques. Step changes in the IMF orientation were first identified at the WIND satellite. A total of 363 events were identified. Ninety percent of the events measured at WIND (330) were clearly observed in the IMP 8 data. Of those events, the time delay between the satellites could be determined to within 2 min in 288 events. Four propagation methods were used to estimate the time delay between WIND and IMP 8: (1) using only the X distance between the satellites; (2) assuming that the propagation front plane is in the plane of the Parker spiral; (3) using the IMF in the X–Y plane to estimate the propagation front plane; and (4) using the total IMF to determine the Z component of the propagation front plane. The average (Ē) and maximum (E_max) propagation error (in minutes) as a function of Y–Z distance (in R_e) were determined for each method. It is concluded that the average uncertainty in propagation is 7.5–8.5 min for off-axis distances of 30 R_e (which is the average WIND off-axis distance, and approximately the largest off-axis distance of IMP 8). For off-axis distances of 100 R_e (the largest off-axis distance of WIND), the uncertainties are 17.5–25 min, depending on the propagation method.     

Sausage mode instability of thin current sheets as a cause of magnetospheric substorms

Observations have shown that, prior to substorm explosions, thin current sheets are formed in the plasma sheet of the Earth’s magnetotail. This provokes the question, to what extent current-sheet thinning and substorm onsets are physically, maybe even causally, related. To answer this question, one has to understand the plasma stability of thin current sheets. Kinetic effects must be taken into account since particle scales are reached in the course of tail current-sheet thinning. We present the results of theoretical investigations of the stability of thin current sheets and about the most unstable mode of their decay. Our conclusions are based upon a non-local linear dispersion analysis of a cross-magnetic field instability of Harris-type current sheets. We found that a sausage-mode bulk current instability starts after a sheet has thinned down to the ion inertial length. We also present the results of three-dimensional electromagnetic PIC-code simulations carried out for mass ratios up to M_i/m_e = 64. They verify the linearly predicted properties of the sausage mode decay of thin current sheets in the parameter range of interest.     

Numerical modelling of the thermospheric and ionospheric effects of magnetospheric processes in the cusp region

The thermospheric and ionospheric effects of the precipitating electron flux and field-aligned-current variations in the cusp have been modelled by the use of a new version of the global numerical model of the Earths upper atmosphere developed for studies of polar phenomena. The responses of the electron concentration, ion, electron and neutral temperature, thermospheric wind velocity and electric-field potential to the variations of the precipitating 0.23-keV electron flux intensity and field-aligned current density in the cusp have been calculated by solving the corresponding continuity, momentum and heat balance equations. Features of the atmospheric gravity wave generation and propagation from the cusp region after the electron precipitation and field-aligned current-density increases have been found for the cases of the motionless and moving cusp region. The magnitudes of the disturbances are noticeably larger in the case of the moving region of the precipitation. The thermospheric disturbances are generated mainly by the thermospheric heating due to the soft electron precipitation and propagate to lower latitudes as large-scale atmospheric gravity waves with the mean horizontal velocity of about 690 ms^–1. They reveal appreciable magnitudes at significant distances from the cusp region. The meridional-wind-velocity disturbance at 65° geomagnetic latitude is of the same order (100 ms^–1) as the background wind due to the solar heating, but is oppositely directed. The ionospheric disturbances have appreciable magnitudes at the geomagnetic latitudes 70°–85°. The electron-concentration and -temperature disturbances are caused mainly by the ionization and heating processes due to the precipitation, whereas the ion-temperature disturbances are influence strongly by Joule heating of the ion gas due to the electric-field disturbances in the cusp. The latter strongly influence the zonal- and meridional-wind disturbances as well via the effects of ion drag in the cusp region. The results obtained are of interest because of the location of the     

The role of solar wind pressure jumps in the initiation and control processes of magnetospheric substorms

By the example of commencement and development of two successive substorms on August 1, 1998, the mechanism resulting in the initiation of auroral processes (substorms) is discussed. These events were chosen due to the favorable position of satellites in the solar wind, magnetosphere, and plasma sheet, as well as due to the availability of satellite and ground-based observation data.     

Possible use of non-toxic industrial spillage as a hydrographic tracer

There is a lack of information on deep water or bottom drift in the Firth of Clyde. Dust spillage from the iron ore unloading terminal at Hunterston in the inner Firth offers an opportunity for tracing bottom water movements by determination of ferric oxide levels in the sediments.     

地磁钩扰的全球响应特征研究与初步统计结果

地磁钩扰是太阳耀斑效应的直观表现之一, 其研究有助于深入理解太阳爆发对地球空间环境的影响过程, 并能为空间天气建模和预报提供科学依据.本文利用山东大学威海地磁台和Intermagnet地磁链与子午工程的地磁观测数据, 联合GOES卫星及数字测高仪等的数据, 研究了一个由M5.6级太阳耀斑引发的地磁钩扰事件的全球响应特征.研究发现:地磁钩扰特征呈现出南北半球与午前/午后的差异, 且地磁响应相对于太阳耀斑存在约3 min的滞后现象, 而夜侧无明显扰动; 利用位于日侧的50余个地磁台站的数据统计分析后发现地磁钩扰幅度呈现正态分布, 且在当地时正午附近达到峰值; 利用地磁数据反演出钩扰发生时电离层的电流体系S_s和宁静日电流S_q, 并用该电流体系解释了此事件中地磁数据的变化特征.另外, 本文初步统计了1996-2015年的地磁钩扰事件数以及相关的太阳耀斑事件数, 分析后发现X级耀斑引发地磁钩扰的可能性最大, 达42%, 由M级耀斑引发的地磁钩扰事件数最多, A、B、C级等小耀斑引发地磁钩扰的可能性很小.

     

Reconnection driven lobe convection: Interball tail probe observations and global simulations

We present Interball Tail Probe observations from the high latitude mid-tail magnetopause which provide evidence of reconnection between the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) and lobe field lines during a 6 h interval of stable northward and dawnward IMF on October 19, 1995. Results from a global magnetohydrodynamic simulation for this interval compare well with the Interball observations. With the simulations, we provide an extended global view of this event which gives us insight into the reconnection and convection dynamics of the magnetosphere. We find that reconnection occurs in a region of limited spatial extent near the terminator and where the IMF and the lobe field are anti-parallel. Reconnected IMF field lines drape over the dayside magnetosphere, convect along the flanks into the nightside, and enter the magnetotail through a small entry window that is located in the flank opposite to the reconnection site. Ionospheric convection is consistent with previous observations under similar IMF conditions and exhibits a two cell pattern with a dominant lobe cell over the pole. The magnetic mapping between the ionosphere and the lobe boundary is characterized by two singularities: the narrow entry window in the tail maps to a 6 h wide section of the ionospheric lobe cell. A singular mapping line cuts the lobe cell open and maps to almost the entire tail magnetopause. By this singularity the magnetosphere avoids having a stagnation point, i.e., the lobe cell center maps to a tailward convecting field line. The existence of singularities in the magnetic mapping between the ionosphere and the tail has important implications for the study of tail–ionosphere coupling via empirical magnetic field models. Because the lobe–IMF reconnection cuts away old lobe flux and replaces it with flux tubes of magnetosheath origin, solar wind plasma enters the lobes in a process that is similar to the one that operates during southward IMF.     

Nitrate as a tracer of groundwater flow in a fractured multilayered aquifer

Abstract

Knowledge of the processes that control nitrate migration and its geochemical evolution in the subsurface are fundamental for the regional management of polluted aquifers. In this paper, the spatial distribution and transient variations of nitrate concentrations, associated with manure fertilization, are used to depict hydrogeological dynamics within the sedimentary aquifer system of la Plana de Vic in the Osona region of Spain. Flow systems are identified from geological, hydraulic head, hydrochemical and isotopic data, and by considering nitrate itself as a tracer that indicates how flow paths are modified by human pressures. In this area, nitrates move through fractured aquitards in flows induced by groundwater pumping. Moreover, the lack of casing in the boreholes permits a mixing of groundwater from distinct layers inside the wells, which negates any benefits from the low-nitrate groundwater found in the deepest aquifer layers. Therefore, impacts on groundwater quality are related to intensive manure fertilization as well as to inadequate well construction and exploitation strategies.

Citation Menció, A., Mas-Pla, J., Otero, N. & Soler, A. (2011) Nitrate as a tracer of groundwater flow in a fractured multilayered aquifer. Hydrol. Sci. J. 56(1), 108–122.     

210pb as a chronometer and tracer,Burrinjuck Reservoir,Australia

Cores taken at Burrinjuck Reservoir in southeastern New South Wales have been dated using the first appearance of ¹³⁷Cs, charcoal/bushfire correlations, and annual grass pollen peaks. None of the main ²¹⁰Pb dating models reproduced the ‘known’ chronology. Correlation analysis shows no significant relationship between original ²¹⁰Pb (unsupp.) concentration and grain-size, sedimentation rate or loss on ignition. Differences in sediment source may explain the variations in ²¹⁰Pb. A simple provenance model has been used to interpret the ratio of original ²¹⁰Pb (unsupp.)/²²⁶Ra as a tracer of topsoils and subsoils. High ratios in the reservoir sediments probably indicate eroded topsoils and low ratios eroded subsoils.     

MHD model of magnetosheath flow: comparison with AMPTE/IRM observations on 24 October, 1985

We compare numerical results obtained from a steady-state MHD model of solar wind flow past the terrestrial magnetosphere with documented observations made by the AMPTE/IRM spacecraft on 24 October, 1985, during an inbound crossing of the magnetosheath. Observations indicate that steady conditions prevailed during this about 4 hour-long crossing. The magnetic shear at spacecraft entry into the magnetosphere was 15°. A steady density decrease and a concomitant magnetic field pile-up were observed during the 40 min interval just preceding the magnetopause crossing. In this plasma depletion layer (1) the plasma beta dropped to values below unity; (2) the flow speed tangential to the magnetopause was enhanced; and (3) the local magnetic field and velocity vectors became increasingly more orthogonal to each other as the magnetopause was approached (Phan et al., 1994). We model parameter variations along a spacecraft orbit approximating that of AMPTE/IRM, which was at slightly southern GSE latitudes and about 1.5 h postnoon Local Time. We model the magnetopause as a tangential discontinuity, as suggested by the observations, and take as input solar wind parameters those measured by AMPTE/IRM just prior to its bow shock crossing. We find that computed field and plasma profiles across the magnetosheath and plasma depletion layer match all observations closely. Theoretical predictions on stagnation line flow near this low-shear magnetopause are confirmed by the experimental findings. Our theory does not give, and the data on this pass do not show, any localized density enhancements in the inner magnetosheath region just outside the plasma depletion layer.