Reconstruction of the reconnection rate from Cluster measurements: Method improvements

Authors

V. V. Ivanova, State University, St. Petersburg
Vladimir S. Semenov, State University of St. Petersburg
T. Penz, Austrian Academy of Sciences
I. B. Ivanov, Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute
V. A. Sergeev, State University, St. Petersburg
M. F. Heyn, University of Graz
Charlie J. Farrugia, University of New HampshireFollow
Helfried K. Biernat, Austrian Academy of Sciences
R. Nakamura, Austrian Academy of Sciences
W. Baumjohann, Austrian Academy of Sciences

Abstract

A remote-sensing method for reconstructing the reconnection rate and the location of X-line from single-spacecraft observations developed recently is extended to a compressible plasma and an asymmetric magnetic field configuration. The method is based on the two-dimensional analytical model of time-dependent Petschek-type magnetic reconnection. The reconstruction technique is applied to a nightside flux transfer event recorded by Cluster spacecraft in the near-Earth magnetotail on 26 September 2005. The reconnection rate is found to be 3.7–4.8 mV/m; the reconnection distance is around 9–11 Re in the tail.

Publication Date

10-31-2007

Journal Title

JGR: Space Physics

Publisher

AGU

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2006JA012183

Document Type

Article

Recommended Citation

Ivanova, V. V.; Semenov, V. S.; Penz, T.; Ivanov, I. B.; Sergeev, V. A.; Heyn, M. F.; Farrugia, C. J.; Biernat, H. K.; Nakamura, R.; Baumjohann, W. (2007). Reconstruction of the reconnection rate from Cluster measurements: Method improvements, JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SPACE PHYSICS. Vol. 112, No. A10. DOI: 10.1029/2006JA012183