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Energetic Particles Observed in the CUSP Region During a Storm Recovery Phase

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Abstract

In this paper we report energetic ion behavior and its composition variations observed by the Cluster/RAPID instrument when the spacecraft was travelling in the high latitude magnetospheric boundary region on the day of the 31 March, 2001, strongest magnetic storm in the past 50 years. The Dst index reached −360 nT at about 09:00 UT. During its early recovery phase, large amounts of oxygen and helium ions were observed; the ratio of oxygen to hydrogen in the RAPID energy range reached as high as 250%, which suggests that the observed energetic particles might be of magnetospheric origin. The observations further show that enhanced energetic electron fluxes are confined in a very narrow region, while protons have occupied a larger region, and heavy ions have been observed in an even larger region. The flux of energetic electrons show a slight enhancement in a region where the magnetic field magnitude is around zero. These observed energetic ions could be quasi-trapped by the current sheet in the stagnation region of the cusp.

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Abbreviations

CIS:

Cluster Ion Spectrometer

CME:

Coronal Mass Ejection

FGM:

Fluxgate Magnetometer

GSE:

Geocentric Solar Ecliptic

IMF:

Interplanetary Magnetic Field

RAPID:

Research with Adaptive Particle Imaging Detectors

S/C:

Spacecraft

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China

    S. Y. Fu, Z. Y. Pu & C. J. Xiao

  2. CSP, Boston University, Boston, USA

    Q. G. Zong

  3. Max-Planck Institut fuer Aeronomie, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany

    A. Korth & P. Daly

  4. CESR, BP 4346, 31028, Toulouse Cedex 4, France

    H. Reme

Authors
  1. S. Y. Fu
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  2. Q. G. Zong
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  3. Z. Y. Pu
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  4. C. J. Xiao
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  5. A. Korth
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  6. P. Daly
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  7. H. Reme
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Correspondence to S. Y. Fu.

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Fu, S.Y., Zong, Q.G., Pu, Z.Y. et al. Energetic Particles Observed in the CUSP Region During a Storm Recovery Phase. Surv Geophys 26, 241–254 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10712-005-1881-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10712-005-1881-5

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