Articles | Volume 30, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-30-143-2012
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-30-143-2012
Regular paper
 | 
16 Jan 2012
Regular paper |  | 16 Jan 2012

On the retreat of near-Earth neutral line during substorm expansion phase: a THEMIS case study during the 9 January 2008 substorm

X. Cao, Z. Y. Pu, A. M. Du, V. M. Mishin, X. G. Wang, C. J. Xiao, T. L. Zhang, V. Angelopoulos, J. P. McFadden, and K. H. Glassmeier

Abstract. The location of magnetic reconnection in the mid-tail during a substorm was studied in many researches. Here we present multi-point THEMIS observations of a reconnection event in the near-Earth magnetotail during substorm. In this event, THEMIS probes stayed in the near-Earth and mid-tail region aligning along the magnetotail. This allows reconnection evolution to be probed simultaneously from about −10 RE to −23 RE down tail. The Hall current related electron streams were observed at the same time by two probes far away from the reconnection site. Before near-Earth reconnection involved the tail lobe magnetic field, the reconnection site was restricted in earthward −23 RE. When reconnection involved into the tail lobe region, the reconnection site started to retreat gradually.

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