Articles | Volume 35, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-465-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-465-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Regular paper
| 
22 Mar 2017
Regular paper |
| 22 Mar 2017
Estimation of a planetary magnetic field using a reduced magnetohydrodynamic model
Christian Nabert
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Institut für Geophysik und extraterrestrische Physik, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Mendelssohnstr. 3, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
Daniel Heyner
Institut für Geophysik und extraterrestrische Physik, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Mendelssohnstr. 3, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
Karl-Heinz Glassmeier
Institut für Geophysik und extraterrestrische Physik, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Mendelssohnstr. 3, 38106 Braunschweig, Germany
Max-Planck-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 3, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
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At the bow shock the solar wind is slowed down in front of Earth's magnetosphere. This is accompanied by a gain in strength of the magnetic field, which implies that the bow shock carries electric currents. We present the a comprehensive statistical study of bow shock currents making use of multi-point data collected by Cluster spacecraft. We find that the currents depend on the shock geometry and the interplanetary magnetic field and are in good accordance with theory and simulation results.
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The interaction of the solar wind with a planetary magnetic field causes electrical currents that modify the magnetic field distribution around the planet. We present an approach to estimating the planetary magnetic field contribution by minimizing the misfit between simulation results and in situ spacecraft data. The approach is developed with respect to the upcoming BepiColombo mission to Mercury aimed at determining the planet's magnetic field.
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The solar wind plasma interacts with a planetary magnetic field. A magnetohydrodynamic model is used to simulate the interaction and resulting plasma flow. The model uses solar wind inflow parameters as boundary condition. Spacecraft data of the interaction region are compared to the flow model. The solar wind boundary parameters are varied until the model matches the data. With a time-resolution of about 10min, the time-dependent solar wind boundary parameters were reconstructed from the data.
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Plasma waves are an integral part of cometary physics, as they facilitate the transfer of energy and momentum. From intermediate to strong activity, nonlinear asymmetric plasma and magnetic field enhancements dominate the inner coma of 67P/CG. We present a statistical survey of these structures from December 2014 to June 2016, facilitated by Rosetta's unprecedented long mission duration. Using a 1D MHD model, we show they can be described as a combination of nonlinear and dissipative effects.
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Ann. Geophys., 39, 379–396, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-39-379-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-39-379-2021, 2021
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Boundaries in the plasma around comet 67P separate regions with different properties. Many have been identified, including a new boundary called an infant bow shock. Here, we investigate how the plasma and fields behave at this boundary and where it can be found. The main result is that the infant bow shock occurs at intermediate activity and intermediate distances to the comet. Most plasma parameters behave as expected; however, some inconsistencies indicate that the boundary is non-stationary.
Simon Toepfer, Yasuhito Narita, Daniel Heyner, Patrick Kolhey, and Uwe Motschmann
Geosci. Instrum. Method. Data Syst., 9, 471–481, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-9-471-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-9-471-2020, 2020
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The Capon method serves as a powerful and robust data analysis tool when working on various kinds of ill-posed inverse problems. Besides the analysis of waves, the method can be used in a generalized way to compare actual measurements with theoretical models, such as Mercury's magnetic field analysis. In view to the BepiColombo mission this work establishes a mathematical basis for the application of Capon's method to analyze Mercury's internal magnetic field in a robust and manageable way.
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The German Geophysical Society was founded in 1922 as the Deutsche Seismologische Vereinigung. One of the 24 founders of this society was Karl Friedrich Almstedt. Born in 1891 and deceased in 1964, Almstedt represents a generation of academics and scientists who grew up during the decline of the European empires, experiencing the devastations of the two World Wars and the cruelties of the Nazi era as well as the resurrection of academic and cultural life in post-war Germany.
Evelyn Liebert, Christian Nabert, and Karl-Heinz Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 36, 1073–1080, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-36-1073-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-36-1073-2018, 2018
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At the bow shock the solar wind is slowed down in front of Earth's magnetosphere. This is accompanied by a gain in strength of the magnetic field, which implies that the bow shock carries electric currents. We present the a comprehensive statistical study of bow shock currents making use of multi-point data collected by Cluster spacecraft. We find that the currents depend on the shock geometry and the interplanetary magnetic field and are in good accordance with theory and simulation results.
Evelyn Liebert, Christian Nabert, Christopher Perschke, Karl-Heinz Fornaçon, and Karl-Heinz Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 35, 645–657, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-645-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-645-2017, 2017
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We present a statistical survey of current magnitudes, directions and locations at the high-latitude day-side magnetopause using Cluster's multi-spacecraft data. Our results show that the magnetopause current flow directions match expectations based on existing models and simulations. Current magnitudes are in correspondence with former studies. In addition, we observe a varying location of the currents with respect to changes in the ambient plasma properties.
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Ann. Geophys., 35, 613–628, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-613-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-35-613-2017, 2017
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The behaviour of mirror mode waves in Venus's magnetosheath is investigated for solar minimum and maximum conditions. It is shown that the total observational rate of these waves does not change much; however, the distribution over the magnetosheath is significantly different, as well as the growth and decay of the waves during these different solar activity conditions.
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Ann. Geophys., 34, 691–707, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-691-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-691-2016, 2016
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A new type of wave has been detected by the magnetometer of the Rosetta spacecraft close to comet P67/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. We provide the analytical model of this wave excitation from linear perturbation theory. A modified ion-Weibel instability is identified as source of this wave excited by a cometary current. The waves predominantly grow perpendicular to this current. A fan-like phase structure results from superposing the strongest growing waves in a cometary rest frame.
Ingo Richter, Hans-Ulrich Auster, Gerhard Berghofer, Chris Carr, Emanuele Cupido, Karl-Heinz Fornaçon, Charlotte Goetz, Philip Heinisch, Christoph Koenders, Bernd Stoll, Bruce T. Tsurutani, Claire Vallat, Martin Volwerk, and Karl-Heinz Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 34, 609–622, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-609-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-609-2016, 2016
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We have analysed the magnetic field measurements performed on the ROSETTA orbiter and the lander PHILAE during PHILAE's descent to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko on 12 November 2014. We observed a new type of low-frequency wave with amplitudes of ~ 3 nT, frequencies of 20–50 mHz, wavelengths of ~ 300 km, and propagation velocities of ~ 6 km s−1. The waves are generated in a ~ 100 km region around the comet a show a highly correlated behaviour, which could only be determined by two-point observations.
Christian Nabert and Karl-Heinz Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 34, 421–425, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-421-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-421-2016, 2016
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Electrical resistivity can influence the occurrence of shock waves. We derive analytically necessary conditions for shocks in a nonuniform resistive magnetohydrodynamic plasma. The nonuniform resistivity significantly modifies the characteristic velocity of wave propagation. A sufficient gradient of the resistivity in a diffusion region can satisfy the necessary condition for the occurrence of slow shocks, which is related to Petschek reconnection.
Dennis Frühauff and Karl-Heinz Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 34, 399–409, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-399-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-399-2016, 2016
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This study presents an investigation on the occurrence of fast flows in the magnetotail using the complete available data set of the THEMIS spacecraft for the years 2007 to 2015. First, basic statistical findings concerning velocity distributions, occurrence rates, group structures and key features of 16 000 events are presented using Superposed Epoch and Minimum Variance Analysis techniques.
Y. Narita, E. Marsch, C. Perschke, K.-H. Glassmeier, U. Motschmann, and H. Comişel
Ann. Geophys., 34, 393–398, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-393-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-393-2016, 2016
Y. Narita, R. Nakamura, W. Baumjohann, K.-H. Glassmeier, U. Motschmann, and H. Comişel
Ann. Geophys., 34, 85–89, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-85-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-85-2016, 2016
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Four-spacecraft Cluster observations of turbulent fluctuations in the magnetic reconnection region in the geomagnetic tail show for the first time an indication of ion Bernstein waves, electromagnetic waves that propagate nearly perpendicular to the mean magnetic field and are in resonance with ions. Bernstein waves may influence current sheet dynamics in the reconnection outflow such as a bifurcation of the current sheet.
M. Volwerk, I. Richter, B. Tsurutani, C. Götz, K. Altwegg, T. Broiles, J. Burch, C. Carr, E. Cupido, M. Delva, M. Dósa, N. J. T. Edberg, A. Eriksson, P. Henri, C. Koenders, J.-P. Lebreton, K. E. Mandt, H. Nilsson, A. Opitz, M. Rubin, K. Schwingenschuh, G. Stenberg Wieser, K. Szegö, C. Vallat, X. Vallieres, and K.-H. Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 34, 1–15, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-1-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-34-1-2016, 2016
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The solar wind magnetic field drapes around the active nucleus of comet 67P/CG, creating a magnetosphere. The solar wind density increases and with that the pressure, which compresses the magnetosphere, increasing the magnetic field strength near Rosetta. The higher solar wind density also creates more ionization through collisions with the gas from the comet. The new ions are picked-up by the magnetic field and generate mirror-mode waves, creating low-field high-density "bottles" near 67P/CG.
C. Nabert, C. Othmer, and K.-H. Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 33, 1513–1524, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-1513-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-1513-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
The solar wind plasma interacts with a planetary magnetic field. A magnetohydrodynamic model is used to simulate the interaction and resulting plasma flow. The model uses solar wind inflow parameters as boundary condition. Spacecraft data of the interaction region are compared to the flow model. The solar wind boundary parameters are varied until the model matches the data. With a time-resolution of about 10min, the time-dependent solar wind boundary parameters were reconstructed from the data.
L. Dai, C. Wang, V. Angelopoulos, and K.-H. Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 33, 1147–1153, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-1147-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-1147-2015, 2015
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Magnetic reconnection is a ubiquitous process that drives global-scale dynamics in plasmas. For reconnection to proceed, both ion and electrons must be unfrozen in a localized diffusion region. By analyzing in situ measurements, we show that the non-gyrotropic ion pressure is mainly responsible for breaking the ion frozen-in condition in reconnection. The reported non-gyrotropic ion pressure tensor can specify the reconnection electric field that controls how quickly reconnection proceeds.
I. Richter, C. Koenders, H.-U. Auster, D. Frühauff, C. Götz, P. Heinisch, C. Perschke, U. Motschmann, B. Stoll, K. Altwegg, J. Burch, C. Carr, E. Cupido, A. Eriksson, P. Henri, R. Goldstein, J.-P. Lebreton, P. Mokashi, Z. Nemeth, H. Nilsson, M. Rubin, K. Szegö, B. T. Tsurutani, C. Vallat, M. Volwerk, and K.-H. Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 33, 1031–1036, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-1031-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-1031-2015, 2015
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We present a first report on magnetic field measurements made in the coma of comet 67P/C-G in its low-activity state. The plasma environment is dominated by quasi-coherent, large-amplitude, compressional magnetic field oscillations around 40mHz, differing from the observations at strongly active comets where waves at the cometary ion gyro-frequencies are the main feature. We propose a cross-field current instability associated with the newborn cometary ions as a possible source mechanism.
M. Volwerk, K.-H. Glassmeier, M. Delva, D. Schmid, C. Koenders, I. Richter, and K. Szegö
Ann. Geophys., 32, 1441–1453, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-32-1441-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-32-1441-2014, 2014
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We discuss three flybys (within an 8-day time span) of comet 1P/Halley by VEGA 1, 2 and Giotto. Looking at two different plasma phenomena: mirror mode waves and field line draping; we study the differences in SW--comet interaction between these three flybys. We find that on this time scale (comparable to Rosetta's orbits) there is a significant difference, both caused by changing outgassing rate of the comet and changes in the solar wind. We discuss implications for Rosetta RPC observations.
K.-H. Glassmeier and B. T. Tsurutani
Hist. Geo Space. Sci., 5, 11–62, https://doi.org/10.5194/hgss-5-11-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hgss-5-11-2014, 2014
R. Nakamura, F. Plaschke, R. Teubenbacher, L. Giner, W. Baumjohann, W. Magnes, M. Steller, R. B. Torbert, H. Vaith, M. Chutter, K.-H. Fornaçon, K.-H. Glassmeier, and C. Carr
Geosci. Instrum. Method. Data Syst., 3, 1–11, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-3-1-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-3-1-2014, 2014
M. Volwerk, C. Koenders, M. Delva, I. Richter, K. Schwingenschuh, M. S. Bentley, and K.-H. Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 31, 2201–2206, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-31-2201-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-31-2201-2013, 2013
C. Perschke, Y. Narita, S. P. Gary, U. Motschmann, and K.-H. Glassmeier
Ann. Geophys., 31, 1949–1955, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-31-1949-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-31-1949-2013, 2013
C. Nabert, K.-H. Glassmeier, and F. Plaschke
Ann. Geophys., 31, 419–437, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-31-419-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-31-419-2013, 2013
A. Alexandrova, R. Nakamura, V. S. Semenov, I. V. Kubyshkin, S. Apatenkov, E. V. Panov, D. Korovinskiy, H. Biernat, W. Baumjohann, K.-H. Glassmeier, and J. P. McFadden
Ann. Geophys., 30, 1727–1741, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-30-1727-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-30-1727-2012, 2012
Short summary
Knowledge of planetary magnetic fields provides deep insights into the structure and dynamics of planets. Due to the interaction of a planet with the solar wind plasma, electrical currents are generated which modify the planetary magnetic field outside the planet. New methods are presented to estimate the planetary magnetic field contribution from spacecraft observations. A reduced model of the interaction relates the time-varying observations to the planetary magnetic field magnitude.
Knowledge of planetary magnetic fields provides deep insights into the structure and dynamics of...
