Abstract
During a magnetopause crossing near the subsolar point Cluster observes the ion diffusion region of antiparallel magnetic reconnection. The reconnecting plasmas are asymmetric, differing in magnetic field strength, density, and temperature. Spatial changes in the electron distributions in the diffusion region are resolved and investigated in detail. Heating of magnetosheath electrons parallel to the magnetic field is observed. This heating is shown to be consistent with trapping of magnetosheath electrons by parallel electric fields.
- Received 11 December 2013
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.112.215004
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© 2014 American Physical Society
Synopsis
Asymmetric Reconnections
Published 28 May 2014
Satellite observations of the Earth’s magnetosphere reveal how electrons are heated when plasmas with different densities, temperatures, and magnetic field strengths collide.
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