Magnetospheric Multi-Scale Observations of High-Energy Electrons and Protons in the Vicinity of Southern High-Altitude Cusp Boundaries

TL;DR

This study uses MMS observations to analyze high-energy electron and proton events near the southern high-altitude cusp, revealing plasma dynamics and magnetic reconnection processes that contribute to particle leakage and cavity formation.

Contribution

It provides new case study insights into cusp boundary interactions, plasma flows, and magnetic reconnection, linking these phenomena to high-energy particle leakage in the magnetosphere.

Findings

Most electron leakage events occur near the southern high-altitude cusp.

Magnetic reconnection signatures are observed above and dawn-ward of MMS.

Kelvin-Helmholtz instability conditions are satisfied in plasma flows.

Abstract

Recent Magnetosphere Multiscale (MMS) observations found 238 high energy (> 40 keV) electron "leaking" events in the the magnetosheath [Cohen et al., 2017]. While several sources have been proposed, the dominant mechanism or origin of these particles is not well understood. We have analyzed MMS locations during these these events and found that most of these electron leaking events were observed close to the southern high-altitude cusp and associated boundaries, so these events may have a high-latitude source. Here we present a new case study of observations of a MMS encounter of southern magnetospheric cusp boundaries. In the magnetosheath side of the southern cusp, MMS observes both parallel streaming energetic ions, as well as a population with 90 degree pitch angles. Subsequently, MMS detects plasma flows and magnetic field rotation consistent with magnetic reconnection (operating above and dawn-ward of the MMS spacecraft), finally entering a depressed magnetic field region with nearly stagnant flow. The depressed field region is occupied by high-fluxes of trapped high-energy electrons and protons, which resemble the Cluster observations of cusp diamagnetic cavities at the northern hemisphere [Nykyri et al., 2011a]. However, the local magnetic field geometry during the prevailing IMF orientation is not favorable for magnetic reconnection to directly create a cavity in this location. We show that the plasma flows that were observed prior to cavity observation satisfy the onset condition for the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability for 50 percent of all available k-vector directions.