A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

Ion Acceleration by Flux Transfer Events in the Terrestrial Magnetosheath




AuthorsR. Järvinen, R. Vainio, M. Palmroth, L. Juusola, S. Hoilijoki, Y. Pfau‐Kempf, U. Ganse, L. Turc, S. von Alfthan

PublisherBlackwell Publishing Ltd

Publication year2018

JournalGeophysical Research Letters

Journal name in sourceGeophysical Research Letters

Volume45

Issue4

First page 1723

Last page1731

Number of pages9

ISSN0094-8276

eISSN1944-8007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL076192

Self-archived copy’s web addresshttps://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/30387242


Abstract

We report ion acceleration by flux transfer events in the terrestrial magnetosheath in a global two‐dimensional hybrid‐Vlasov polar plane simulation of Earth's solar wind interaction. In the model we find that propagating flux transfer events created in magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause drive fast‐mode bow waves in the magnetosheath, which accelerate ions in the shocked solar wind flow. The acceleration at the bow waves is caused by a shock drift‐like acceleration process under stationary solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field upstream conditions. Thus, the energization is not externally driven but results from plasma dynamics within the magnetosheath. Energetic proton populations reach the energy of 30 keV, and their velocity distributions resemble time‐energy dispersive ion injections observed by the Cluster spacecraft in the magnetosheath.


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