Journal article
Simultaneous field-aligned currents at Swarm and Cluster satellites
We show for the first time, with direct, multispacecraft calculations of electric current density, and other methods, matched signatures of field-aligned currents (FACs) sampled simultaneously near the ionosphere at low (∼500km altitude) orbit and in the magnetosphere at medium (similar to 2.5 RE altitude) orbits using a particular Swarm and Cluster conjunction.
The Cluster signatures are interpreted and ordered through joint mapping of the ground/magnetospheric footprints and estimation of the auroral zone boundaries (taken as indication of the boundaries of Region 1 and Region 2 currents). We find clear evidence of both small-scale and large-scale FACs and clear matching of the behavior and structure of the large-scale currents at both Cluster and Swarm.
The methodology is made possible through the joint operations of Cluster and Swarm, which contain, in the first several months of Swarm operations, a number of close three-spacecraft configurations.
Language: | English |
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Year: | 2015 |
Pages: | 3683-3691 |
ISSN: | 19448007 and 00948276 |
Types: | Journal article |
DOI: | 10.1002/2015GL063738 |
ORCIDs: | 0000-0002-8195-5137 , 0000-0001-7991-5067 and Olsen, N. |