Magnetic Reconnection

The Sweet-Parker layer in a system that exceeds a critical value of the Lundquist number ͑S͒ is unstable to the plasmoid instability. In this paper, a numerical scaling study has been done with an island coalescing system driven by a low level of random noise. In the early stage, a primary Sweet-Parker layer forms between the two coalescing islands. The primary Sweet-Parker layer breaks into multiple plasmoids and even thinner current sheets through multiple levels of cascading if the Lundquist number is greater than a critical value S c Ӎ 4 ϫ 10 4 . As a result of the plasmoid instability, the system realizes a fast nonlinear reconnection rate that is nearly independent of S, and is only weakly dependent on the level of noise. The number of plasmoids in the linear regime is found to scales as S 3/8 , as predicted by an earlier asymptotic analysis ͓N. F. Loureiro et al., Phys. Plasmas 14, 100703 ͑2007͔͒. In the nonlinear regime, the number of plasmoids follows a steeper scaling, and is proportional to S. The thickness and length of current sheets are found to scale as S −1 , and the local current densities of current sheets scale as S −1 . Heuristic arguments are given in support of theses scaling relations.

A Petschek-type model of magnetic reconnection is used to describe the behaviour of nightside flux transfer events (NFTEs). Based on the Cagniard-deHoop method we calculate the magnetic field and plasma flow time series observed by a satellite. The reconstruction of the reconnection electric field is an ill-posed inverse problem, which we treat with the method of regularisation, since the solution of the Cagniard-deHoop method is given in the form of a convolution integral, which is a well- known problem in the theory of inverse problems. This method is applied to Cluster measurements from September 8 th , 2002, and from August, 13 th , 2002, where a series of Earth-ward propagating 1-minute scale magnetic field and plasma flow variations are observed which are consistent with the theoretical picture of NFTEs. Methods to estimate the satellite position with respect to the reconnection site as well as the Alfven velocity are presented because they are necessary parameters used in the...

A study supported by the European Space Agency (ESA), in the context of its General Studies Programme, performed an investigation of the possible use of space for studies in pure and applied plasma physics, in areas not traditionally covered by 'space plasma physics'. A set of experiments have been identified that can potentially provide access to new phenomena and to allow advances in several fields of plasma science. These experiments concern phenomena on a spatial scale (101-104 m) intermediate between what is achievable on the ground and the usual solar system plasma observations. Detailed feasibility studies have been performed for three experiments: active magnetic experiments, large-scale discharges and long tether-plasma interactions. The perspectives opened by these experiments are discussed for magnetic reconnection, instabilities, MHD turbulence, atomic excited states kinetics, weakly ionized plasmas, plasma diagnostics, artificial auroras and atmospheric studie...

The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MES-SENGER) mission to Mercury offers our first opportunity to explore this planet's miniature magnetosphere since the brief flybys of Mariner 10. Mercury's magnetosphere is unique in many respects. The magnetosphere of Mercury is among the smallest in the solar system; its magnetic field typically stands off the solar wind only ∼1000 to 2000 km above the surface. For this reason there are no closed drift paths for energetic particles and, hence, no radiation belts. Magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause may erode the subsolar magnetosphere, allowing solar wind ions to impact directly the regolith. Inductive currents in Mercury's interior may act to modify the solar wind interaction by resisting changes

We present multiwavelength observations of a large-amplitude oscillation of a polar crown filament on 15 October 2002. The oscillation occurred during the slow rise (about 1 km/s) of the filament. It completed three cycles before sudden acceleration and eruption. The oscillation and following eruption were clearly seen in observations recorded by the Extreme-Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope onboard SOHO. The oscillation was seen only in a part of the filament, and it appears to be a standing oscillation rather than a propagating wave. The period of oscillation was about two hours and did not change significantly during the oscillation. We also identified the oscillation as a "winking filament" in the H-alpha images taken by the Flare Monitoring Telescope, and as a spatial displacement in 17 GHz microwave images from Nobeyama Radio Heliograph (NoRH). The filament oscillation seems to be triggered by magnetic reconnection between a filament barb and nearby emerging magnetic flu...

1] Solar wind fast streams emanating from solar coronal holes cause recurrent, moderate intensity geomagnetic activity at Earth. Intense magnetic field regions called Corotating Interaction Regions or CIRs are created by the interaction of fast streams with upstream slow streams. Because of the highly oscillatory nature of the GSM magnetic field z component within CIRs, the resultant magnetic storms are typically only weak to moderate in intensity. CIR-generated magnetic storm main phases of intensity Dst < À100 nT (major storms) are rare. The elongated storm ''recovery'' phases which are characterized by continuous AE activity that can last for up to 27 days (a solar rotation) are caused by nonlinear Alfven waves within the high streams proper. Magnetic reconnection associated with the southward (GSM) components of the Alfvén waves is the solar wind energy transfer mechanism. The acceleration of relativistic electrons occurs during these magnetic storm ''recovery'' phases. The magnetic reconnection associated with the Alfvén waves cause continuous, shallow injections of plasma sheet plasma into the magnetosphere. The asymmetric plasma is unstable to wave (chorus and other modes) growth, a feature central to many theories of electron acceleration. It is noted that the continuous AE activity is not a series of substorm expansion phases. Arguments are also presented why these AE activity intervals are not convection bays. The auroras during these continuous AE activity intervals are less intense than substorm auroras and are global (both dayside and nightside) in nature. Owing to the continuous nature of this activity, it is possible that there is greater average energy input into the magnetosphere/ ionosphere system during far declining phases of the solar cycle compared with those during solar maximum. The discontinuities and magnetic decreases (MDs) associated with interplanetary Alfven waves may be important for geomagnetic activity. In conclusion, it will be shown that geomagnetic storms associated with high-speed streams/CIRs will have the same initial, main, and ''recovery'' phases as those associated with ICME-related magnetic storms but that the interplanetary causes are considerably different. Citation: Tsurutani, B. T., et al. (2006), Corotating solar wind streams and recurrent geomagnetic activity: A review, J. Geophys.

Astrophysical fluids, including interstellar and interplanetary medium, are magnetized and turbulent. Their appearance, evolution, and overall properties are determined by the magnetic turbulence that stirs it. We argue that examining magnetic turbulence at a fundamental level is vital to understanding many processes. A point that frequently escapes the attention of researchers is that magnetic turbulence cannot be confidently understood only using "brute force" numerical approaches. In this review we illustrate this point on a number of examples, including intermittent heating of plasma by turbulence, interactions of turbulence with cosmic rays and effects of turbulence on the rate of magnetic reconnection. We show that the properties of magnetic turbulence may vary considerably in various environments, e.g. imbalanced turbulence in solar wind differs from balanced turbulence and both of these differ from turbulence in partially ionized gas. Appealing for the necessity of more observational data on magnetic fields, we discuss a possibility of studying interplanetary turbulence using alignment of Sodium atoms in the tail of comets.

Fast reconnection of magnetic field in turbulent fluids allows the field to change its topology and connec- tions. As a result, the traditional concept of magnetic fields being frozen into the plasma is no longer applicable. Plasma associated with a given magnetic field line at one instant is distributed along a different set of magnetic field lines at the next instant. This diffusion of plasmas and magnetic field is enabled by reconnection and therefore is termed ”reconnec- tion diffusion”. The astrophysical implications of this con- cept include heat transfer in plasmas, advection of heavy el- ements in interstellar medium, magnetic field generation etc. However, the most dramatic implications of the concept are related to the star formation process. The reason is that mag- netic fields are dynamically important for most of the stages of star formation. The existing theory of star formation has been developed ignoring the possibility of reconnection dif- fusion. Instead, it appeals to the decoupling of mass and magnetic field arising from neutrals drifting in respect to ions entrained on magnetic field lines, i.e. through the pro- cess that is termed ”ambipolar diffusion”. The predictions of ambipolar diffusion and reconnection diffusion are very different. For instance, if the ionization of media is high, am- bipolar diffusion predicts that the coupling of mass and mag- netic field is nearly perfect. At the same time, reconnection diffusion is independent of the ionization but depends on the scale of the turbulent eddies and on the turbulent velocities. In the paper we explain the physics of reconnection diffusion both from macroscopic and microscopic points of view, i.e. appealing to the reconnection of flux tubes and to the dif-
the dynamics of many key processes, including magnetic re- connection. Fast reconnection of magnetic field in turbulent fluids allows the field to change its topology and connec- tions. As a result, the traditional concept of magnetic fields being frozen into the plasma is no longer applicable. Plasma associated with a given magnetic field line at one instant is distributed along a different set of magnetic field lines at the next instant. This diffusion of plasmas and magnetic field is enabled by reconnection and therefore is termed ”reconnec- tion diffusion”. The astrophysical implications of this con- cept include heat transfer in plasmas, advection of heavy el- ements in interstellar medium, magnetic field generation etc. However, the most dramatic implications of the concept are related to the star formation process. The reason is that mag- netic fields are dynamically important for most of the stages of star formation. The existing theory of star formation has been developed ignoring the possibility of reconnection dif- fusion. Instead, it appeals to the decoupling of mass and magnetic field arising from neutrals drifting in respect to ions entrained on magnetic field lines, i.e. through the pro- cess that is termed ”ambipolar diffusion”. The predictions of ambipolar diffusion and reconnection diffusion are very different. For instance, if the ionization of media is high, am- bipolar diffusion predicts that the coupling of mass and mag- netic field is nearly perfect. At the same time, reconnection diffusion is independent of the ionization but depends on the scale of the turbulent eddies and on the turbulent velocities. In the paper we explain the physics of reconnection diffusion both from macroscopic and microscopic points of view. We make use of the Lazarian & Vishniac 1999 theory of magnetic reconnection and show that this theory is applicable to the partially ionized gas. We quantify the reconnection diffusion rate both for weak and strong MHD turbulence and address the problem of recon- nection diffusion acting together with ambipolar diffusion. In addition, we provide a criterion for correctly representing the magnetic diffusivity in simulations of star formation. We discuss the intimate relation between the processes of recon- nection diffusion, field wandering and turbulent mixing of a magnetized media and show that the role of the plasma ef- fects is limited to ”breaking up lines” on small scales and does not affect the rate of reconnection diffusion. We ad- dress the existing observational results and demonstrate how reconnection diffusion can explain the puzzles presented by observations, in particular, the observed higher magnetiza- tion of cloud cores in comparison with the magnetization of envelopes. We also outline a possible set of observational tests of the reconnection diffusion concept and discuss how the application of the new concept changes our understand- ing of star formation and its numerical modeling. Finally, we outline the differences of the process of reconnection diffusion and the process of accumulation of matter along magnetic field lines that is frequently invoked to explain the results of numerical simulations

CMEs have been observed for over 30 years with a wide variety of instruments. It is now possible to derive detailed and quantitative information on CME morphology, velocity, acceleration and mass. Flares associated with CMEs are observed in X-rays, and several different radio signatures are also seen. Optical and UV spectra of CMEs both on the disk and at the limb provide velocities along the line of sight and diagnostics for temperature, density and composition. From the vast quantity of data we attempt to synthesize the current state of knowledge of the properties of CMEs, along with some specific observed characteristics that illuminate the physical processes occurring during CME eruption. These include the common three-part structures of CMEs, which is generally attributed to compressed material at the leading edge, a low-density magnetic bubble and dense prominence gas. Signatures of shock waves are seen, but the location of these shocks relative to the other structures and the occurrence rate at the heights where Solar Energetic Particles are produced remains controversial. The relationships among CMEs, Moreton waves, EIT waves, and EUV dimming are also cloudy. The close connection between CMEs and flares suggests that magnetic reconnection plays an important role in CME eruption and evolution. We discuss the evidence for reconnection in current sheets from white-light, X-ray, radio and UV observations. Finally, we summarize the requirements for future instrumentation that might answer the outstanding questions and the opportunities that new space-based and ground-based observatories will provide in the future.

The solar wind, magnetosphere, and ionosphere are intrinsically coupled through magnetic ÿeld lines. The electrodynamic state of the high-latitude ionosphere is controlled by several geophysical processes, such as the location and rate of magnetic reconnection at the magnetopause and in the magnetotail, and the energisation and precipitation of solar wind and magnetospheric plasmas. Amongst the most observed ionospheric manifestation of solar wind=magnetospheric processes are the convection bursts associated with the so-called ux transfer events (FTEs), magnetic impulse events (MIEs), and travelling convection vortices (TCVs). Furthermore, the large-scale ionospheric convection conÿguration has also demonstrated a strong correspondence to variations in the interplanetary medium and substorm activity. This report brie y discusses the progress made over the past decade in studies of these transient convection phenomena and outlines some unsettled questions as well as future research directions.

1] We have analyzed Cluster magnetic field and plasma data during high-altitude cusp crossing and compared them with high-resolution MHD simulations. Cluster encountered a diamagnetic cavity (DMC) during northward interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions, and as the IMF rotated southward, the spacecraft reencountered the cavity more at the sunward side of the cusp because the reconnection site had changed location. We found evidence of magnetic reconnection both during northward and southward IMF conditions. The Cluster separation was ∼5000 km, enabling for the first time measurements both inside the DMC and surrounding boundaries that allowed us to construct the structure of the DMC and put the observations of ion pitch angle distributions in context of local reconnection topology and gradients of the boundaries. The cavity is characterized by strong magnetic field fluctuations and high-energy particles. At the magnetosheath boundary the high-energy particle fluxes reduced by several orders of magnitude. Throughout the magnetosheath, the high-energy proton fluxes remained low except during brief intervals when sc4 and sc1 dropped back into the cavity due to changes in solar wind dynamic pressure. However, the high-energy O+ fluxes did not drop as much in the magnetosheath and were mostly at 60°-120°pitch angles, indicative of a trapped population in the DMC which is observed in the magnetosheath due to a large gyroradius. Significant fluxes of protons and ionized oxygen were also observed escaping from the diamagnetic cavity antiparallel to the magnetic field in a time scale more consistent with the local DMC source than with a reflected bow shock source.

The Super Dual Auroral Radar Network (SuperDARN) has been operating as an international co-operative organization for over 10 years. The network has now grown so that the fields of view of its 18 radars cover the majority of the northern and southern hemisphere polar ionospheres. SuperDARN has been successful in addressing a wide range of scientific questions concerning processes in the magnetosphere, ionosphere,

A series of flares with exceptionally hard spectral indices in the hard X-ray band occurred on 3 October 1993. The non-thermal bremsstrahlung spectra may extend to a few keV in these events, one of which was detectable in the Yohkoh Bragg Crystal Spectrometer at 7keV as well as by the hard X-ray instruments at higher energies. We present Yohkoh soft and hard X-ray imaging, spectroscopy and energetics analysis of these events, with the idea that flares with such flat spectra (power-law as hard as 1.98 below 33keV) might differ appreciably from ordinary flares. The series of events is strongly homologous, with no systematic variations in structure over a period of 3.5-hours except for jet-like ejecta accompanying Type III/V bursts. Unlike other hard events, these flares are large (footpoint separation about 3x10^4^km) and therefore well resolved by the Yohkoh imaging instruments. The time variations match the Neupert effect. The hard and soft X-ray images also show footpoint brighteni...

We summarize the theory and modeling efforts for the STEREO mission, which will be used to interpret the data of both the remote-sensing (SECCHI, SWAVES) and in-situ M. J. Aschwanden ( ) Solar & Astrophysics Lab., Lockheed Martin ATC, 3251 Hanover St., Springer Space Sci Rev instruments (IMPACT, PLASTIC). The modeling includes the coronal plasma, in both open and closed magnetic structures, and the solar wind and its expansion outwards from the Sun, which defines the heliosphere. Particular emphasis is given to modeling of dynamic phenomena associated with the initiation and propagation of coronal mass ejections (CMEs). The modeling of the CME initiation includes magnetic shearing, kink instability, filament eruption, and magnetic reconnection in the flaring lower corona. The modeling of CME propagation entails interplanetary shocks, interplanetary particle beams, solar energetic particles (SEPs), geoeffective connections, and space weather. This review describes mostly existing models of groups that have committed their work to the STEREO mission, but is by no means exhaustive or comprehensive regarding alternative theoretical approaches.

The MESSENGER mission to Mercury offers our first opportunity to explore this planet's miniature magnetosphere since the brief flybys of Mariner 10. Mercury's magnetosphere is unique in many respects. The magnetosphere of Mercury is among the smallest in the solar system; its magnetic field typically stands off the solar wind only -1000 to 2000 km above the surface. For this reason there are no closed drift paths for energetic particles and, hence, no radiation belts. The characteristic time scales for wave propagation and convective transport are short and kinetic and fluid modes may be coupled. Magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause may erode the subsolar magnetosphere allowing solar wind ions to impact directly the regolith. Inductive currents in Mercury's interior may act to modify the solar wind interaction by resisting changes due to solar wind pressure variations. Indeed, observations of these induction effects may be an important source of information on the state of Mercury's interior. In addition, Mercury's magnetosphere is the only one with its defining magnetic flux tubes rooted in a planetary regolith as opposed to an atmosphere with a conductive ionospheric layer. This lack of an ionosphere is probably the underlying reason for the brevity of the very intense, but short-lived, -1-2 min, substorm-like energetic particle events observed by Mariner 10 during

We present and interpret observations of two morphologically homologous flares that occurred in active region (AR) NOAA 10501 on 20 November 2003. Both flares displayed four homologous Hα ribbons and were both accompanied by coronal mass ejections (CMEs). The central flare ribbons were located at the site of an emerging bipole in the center of the active region. The negative polarity of this bipole fragmented in two main pieces, one rotating around the positive polarity by ≈ 110 • within 32 hours. We model the coronal magnetic field and compute its topology, using as boundary condition the magnetogram closest in time to each flare. In particular, we calculate the location of quasiseparatrix layers (QSLs) in order to understand the connectivity between the flare ribbons. Though several polarities were present in AR 10501, the global magnetic field topology corresponds to a quadrupolar magnetic field distribution without magnetic null points. For both flares, the photospheric traces of QSLs are similar and match well the locations of the four Hα ribbons. This globally unchanged topology and the continuous shearing by the rotating bipole are two key factors responsible for the flare homology. However, our analyses also indicate that different magnetic connectivity domains of the quadrupolar configuration become unstable during each flare, so that magnetic reconnection proceeds differently in both events.

We study the decay phase of an M2.6 flare, observed with ground based instruments at NSO/Sac Peak and with the cluster of instruments onboard Yohkoh. The whole set of chromospheric and coronal data gives a picture consistent with the classical Kopp-Pneuman model of two-ribbon flares. We clearly witness new episodes of coronal energy release, most probably due to magnetic reconnection,

We present a case study of the Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) observations of the Southern Hemispheric dayside magnetospheric boundaries under southward interplanetary magnetic field direction with strong By component. During this event MMS encountered several magnetic field depressions characterized by enhanced plasma beta and high fluxes of high‐energy electrons and ions at the dusk sector of the southern cusp region that resemble previous Cluster and Polar observations of cusp diamagnetic cavities. Based on the expected maximum magnetic shear model and magnetohydrodynamic simulations, we show that for the present event the diamagnetic cavity‐like structures were formed in an unusual location. Analysis of the composition measurements of ion velocity distribution functions and magnetohydrodynamics simulations show clear evidence of the creation of a new kind of magnetic bottle structures by component reconnection occurring at lower latitudes. We propose that the high‐energy particles trapped in these cavities can sometimes end up in the loss cone and leak out, providing a likely explanation for recent high‐energy particle leakage events observed in the magnetosheath.

1] On 16 February 2008, the THEMIS spacecraft (probes) bracketed the near-Earth signatures of a substorm onset as identified in the THEMIS ground-based observatories measuring an AE TH index up to 180 nT. The main onset was associated with the formation and tailward release of a plasmoid (a proto-plasmoid) at X GSM = À18.3 R E and a dipolarization in the inner part of the plasma sheet at X GSM = À11.0 R E . The time history and geometry of the event in the tail are consistent with magnetic reconnection as the cause of the substorm expansion onset process. Two activations of the plasma sheet, evidenced by tailward streaming of energetic ions and southward or bipolar signatures of the magnetic field, preceded the main substorm. The first activation was associated with an intensification of a high-latitude arc, while the second was associated with the onset of ULF pulsations at midlatitude and low-latitude stations. We conclude that near-Earth plasma sheet activity that may also be due to reconnection and may be related to nonsubstorm arc intensifications can precede substorm onset by several minutes. In particular, high-latitude arcs do not appear to result in substorm initiation even though they may occur in close temporal and spatial proximity to the substorm arc. Citation: Gabrielse, C., et al. (2009), Timing and localization of near-Earth tail and ionospheric signatures during a substorm onset,

We apply the second-order formulation of Maxwell's equations proposed by Jiang et al. (1996, J. Comput. Phys. 125, 104) to the solution of the implicit formulation of the three-dimensional, time-dependent Vlasov-Maxwell's system. An implicit finite difference algorithm is developed to solve the Maxwell's equations in a bounded domain with physical boundary conditions comprising electrically conducting walls (perfect conductors) and constant magnetic flux walls. We formulate the boundary conditions for Maxwell's equations to satisfy Poisson's equation throughout the domain by solving it only on the boundary. This eliminates the need for a separate projection step. We compare numerical results with analytical solutions for electromagnetic waves in vacuo, and using the implicit particle-in-cell code CELESTE3D, we test the new solver on the geospace environment modeling magnetic reconnection challenge problem. c 2002 Elsevier Science (USA)

The centers of galactic disks can repeatedly reach high densities and temperatures, like matter inside stars, such that they start nuclear burning in their mid-planes, and appear as super-massive point sources at present-day resolutions. Near their cores, main-sequence burning evolves into nuclear detonations, whose ejecta are observed in the form of the broad-line region (BLR). Coronal magnetic reconnections generate (relativistic) pair plasma which rams twin jets perpendicular to the disk whenever it succeeds in escaping fast enough from the (lossful) BLR; otherwise we deal with a radio-quiet QSO. The → → (leptonic) jet plasma performs an ordered, almost loss-free E 3B-drift through the channels rammed by the pioneer generations, except when running into (external or internal) obstacles and radiating, in the form of hotspots. Here bulk 662 Lorentz factors are converted to random Lorentz factors, (both) of order 10 , as inferred from the synchrotron and inverse-Compton spectra.

Magnetic turbulence is found in most space plasmas, including the Earth’s magnetosphere, and the interaction region between the magnetosphere and the solar wind. Recent spacecraft observations of magnetic turbulence in the ion foreshock, in the magnetosheath, in the polar cusp regions, in the magnetotail, and in the high latitude ionosphere are reviewed. It is found that: 1. A large share of magnetic turbulence in the geospace environment is generated locally, as due for instance to the reflected ion beams in the ion foreshock, to temperature anisotropy in the magnetosheath and the polar cusp regions, to velocity shear in the magnetosheath and magnetotail, and to magnetic reconnection at the magnetopause and in the magnetotail. 2. Spectral indices close to the Kolmogorov value can be recovered for low frequency turbulence when long enough intervals at relatively constant flow speed are analyzed in the magnetotail, or when fluctuations in the magnetosheath are considered far downstream from the bow shock. 3. For high frequency turbulence, a spectral index α≃2.3 or larger is observed in most geospace regions, in agreement with what is observed in the solar wind. 4. More studies are needed to gain an understanding of turbulence dissipation in the geospace environment, also keeping in mind that the strong temperature anisotropies which are observed show that wave particle interactions can be a source of wave emission rather than of turbulence dissipation. 5. Several spacecraft observations show the existence of vortices in the magnetosheath, on the magnetopause, in the magnetotail, and in the ionosphere, so that they may have a primary role in the turbulent injection and evolution. The influence of such a turbulence on the plasma transport, dynamics, and energization will be described, also using the results of numerical simulations.

An analytical model for drillstring torque and drag is generated using a soft model. The soft model does not integrate all parameters affecting the drillstring behavior although some other researchers have taken the stiffness into account in the soft model. The torque and drag calculated by finite element method (FEM) is more accurate than the analytical model. The FEM can generate results that the analytical method cannot. This is because that the FEM takes both stiffness and some complicated boundary conditions into account. The program developed and presented in this paper can be used for torque and drag analysis in vertical, directional, horizontal, and other complicated wells under different drilling operational modes. Three examples on the calculation of torque and hookload are presented. The comparison between the analytical and numerical models was done, and the results were also compared with field data. The comparison shows that the result from FEM in one example matches the field data well but the analytical model doesn't get good results no matter how the friction coefficient is adjusted. The calculation of the contact force between the drillstring and the wellbore wall was conducted using the FEM. The calculated contact force estimates where the contact happens, as well as brings information about the location of possible drillstring sticking. The analytical model cannot do this, because the entire drillstring is in contact with the low side of the hole. The FEM program presented in this paper will enforce real-time analysis correctness of torque and drag together with the analytical model. The value of these torque and drag models could play an important role in real-time and planning of future drilling operations.

Two substorms occurred at ~04:05 and ~04:55 UT on February 26, 2008 are studied with the in-situ observations of THEMIS satellites and ground-based aurora and magnetic field measurements. Angelopoulos et al. have made a comprehensive study of the 04:55 UT event. We showed detailed features of the two substorms with much attention to the first event and to the relationship between mid-tail magnetic reconnection (MR) and substorm activities. It was found that in the earlier stage of each substorm, a first auroral intensification occurred 2-3 min soon after the start of mid-tail MR, followed by a slow and very limited expansion. The auroral arcs were weak, short-lived, and localized, characterizing all features of a pseudobreakup. We regarded the first auroral brightening as the initial onset of the substorms. A few minutes later, a second stronger auroral intensification appeared, followed by quick and extensive expansions. It was interesting to note that the second brightening and related poleward expansion happened almost simultaneously (within a couple of minutes) with the onset of earthward flow and dipolarization in the near-Earth tail and other phenomenon of the substorm expansion phase. We thus regarded the second auroral brightening as the major onset of the substorms. Furthermore, it was seen that during the growth phase of the two substorms, the polar cap open flux Ψ kept increasing, while it quickly reduced during the substorm expansion and recovery phase. These variations of Ψ implied that the evolution of the two substorm expansion phases were closely related to MR of tail lobe open field lines. Analysis of substorm activities revealed that the two events studied were small substorms; while estimate of MR rate indicated that the MR processes in the two substorms were weak. The aforementioned observations suggested that mid-tail MR initiated the pseudobreakup first; the earthward flow generated by MR transported magnetic flux and energy to the near-Earth tail to cause the formation of SCW and CD, which induced near-Earth dipolarization and major auroral brightening, and eventually led to the onset of the substorm expansion phase. These results were clearly consistent with the picture of NENL and RCS models and supported the two step initiation scenario of substorms.

1] One of the major unresolved issues regarding magnetic reconnection at the dayside magnetopause is the location where reconnection first occurs during periods of a large interplanetary magnetic field B y . In order to address this issue, we examine and contrast the onset of reconnection in the presence and absence of a finite guide field (B y ). In an accompanying paper we showed that in case of one linearly unstable mode, tearing saturates at amplitudes too small to be of relevance to transport at the magnetopause, even in the antiparallel case. However, we show that in general a number of modes are simultaneously unstable at the magnetopause. This process is aided by the presence of electron temperature anisotropy which broadens the unstable spectrum, extending it to very short wavelengths. Multimode tearing gets past the single mode stabilization and grows to large amplitudes in several stages: the initial linear stage, the coalescence process which proceeds at a slower growth rate, the growth and dominance of the longest wavelength in the system, and a final explosive phase which leads to a saturated state with a bifurcated current sheet. The aspect ratio of the magnetic island at the end of the explosive phase is $0.2. This is in good agreement with the aspect ratio of the magnetic island structure at Earth's magnetopause reconstructed from the single-spacecraft data by . We find that in addition to coalescence, there can occur stretching of the X lines. This leads to a recurrent reconnection process where only a single, rather than a pair of magnetic structures are periodically produced, reminiscent of flux transfer events. Although the detailed properties of the various interacting modes are altered in the presence of a guide field, the basic scenario including the final explosive phase of the system remains even for very large guide fields. We calculate the steady state reconnection rate as a function of guide field and plasma beta and show that fast reconnection is obtained even for modest values of guide field. Detailed application of these results to the magnetopause is discussed.

1] Using a multi-code approach, we investigate current sheet thinning and the onset and progress of fast magnetic reconnection, initiated by temporally limited, spatially varying, inflow of magnetic flux. The present study extends an earlier collaborative effort into the transition regime from thick to thin current sheets. Again we find that full particle, hybrid, and Hall-MHD simulations lead to the same fast reconnection rates, apparently independent of the dissipation mechanism. The reconnection rate in MHD simulations is considerably larger than in the earlier study, although still somewhat smaller than in the particle simulations. All simulations lead to surprisingly similar final states, despite differences in energy transfer and dissipation. These states are contrasted with equilibrium models derived for the same boundary perturbations. The similarity of the final states indicates that entropy conservation is satisfied similarly in fluid and kinetic approaches and that Joule dissipation plays only a minor role in the energy transfer.

CMEs have been observed for over 30 years with a wide variety of instruments. It is now possible to derive detailed and quantitative information on CME morphology, velocity, acceleration and mass. Flares associated with CMEs are observed in X-rays, and several different radio signatures are also seen. Optical and UV spectra of CMEs both on the disk and at the limb provide velocities along the line of sight and diagnostics for temperature, density and composition. From the vast quantity of data we attempt to synthesize the current state of knowledge of the properties of CMEs, along with some specific observed characteristics that illuminate the physical processes occurring during CME eruption. These include the common three-part structures of CMEs, which is generally attributed to compressed material at the leading edge, a low-density magnetic bubble and dense prominence gas. Signatures of shock waves are seen, but the location of these shocks relative to the other structures and the occurrence rate at the heights where Solar Energetic Particles are produced remains controversial. The relationships among CMEs, Moreton waves, EIT waves, and EUV dimming are also cloudy. The close connection between CMEs and flares suggests that magnetic reconnection plays an important role in CME eruption and evolution. We discuss the evidence for reconnection in current sheets from white-light, X-ray, radio and UV observations. Finally, we summarize the requirements for future instrumentation that might answer the outstanding questions and the opportunities that new space-based and ground-based observatories will provide in the future.

In order to better understand the solar genesis of interplanetary magnetic clouds (MCs), we model the magnetic and topological properties of four large eruptive solar flares and relate them to observations. We use the three-dimensional Minimum Current Corona model (Longcope, 1996, Solar Phys. 169, 91) and observations of pre-flare photospheric magnetic field and flare ribbons to derive values of reconnected magnetic flux, flare energy, flux rope helicity, and orientation of the flux-rope poloidal field. We compare model predictions of those quantities to flare and MC observations, and within the estimated uncertainties of the methods used find the following: The predicted model reconnection fluxes are equal to or lower than the reconnection fluxes inferred from the observed ribbon motions. Both observed and model reconnection fluxes match the MC poloidal fluxes. The predicted fluxrope helicities match the MC helicities. The predicted free energies lie between the observed energies and the estimated total flare luminosities. The direction of the leading edge of the MC's poloidal field is aligned with the poloidal field of the flux rope in the AR rather than the global dipole field. These findings compel us to believe that magnetic clouds associated with these four solar flares are formed by low-corona magnetic reconnection during the eruption, rather than eruption of pre-existing structures in the corona or formation in the upper corona with participation of the global magnetic field. We also note that since all four flares occurred in active regions without significant pre-flare flux emergence and cancelation, the energy and helicity that we find are stored by shearing and rotating motions, which are sufficient to account for the observed radiative flare energy and MC helicity.

A major two-ribbon X17 flare occurred on 28 October 2003, starting at 11:01 UT in active region NOAA 10486. This flare was accompanied by the eruption of a filament and by one of the fastest halo coronal mass ejections registered during the October -November 2003 strong activity period. We focus on the analysis of magnetic field (SOHO/MDI), chromospheric (NainiTal observatory and TRACE), and coronal (TRACE) data obtained before and during the 28 October event. By combining our data analysis with a model of the coronal magnetic field, we concentrate on the study of two events starting before the main flare. One of these events, evident in TRACE images around one hour prior to the main flare, involves a localized magnetic reconnection process associated with the presence of a coronal magnetic null point. This event extends as long as the major flare and we conclude that it is independent from it. A second event, visible in Hα and TRACE images, simultaneous with the previous one, involves a large-scale quadrupolar reconnection process that contributes to decrease the magnetic field tension in the overlaying field configuration; this allows the filament to erupt in a way similar to that proposed by the breakout model, but with magnetic reconnection occurring at Quasi-Separatrix Layers (QSLs) rather than at a magnetic null point.

Aims. The aim of this work is to determine the relationship between the 3D structure of the coronal magnetic field, diagnosed by the topological skeleton, and current concentrations as potential sites of 3D reconnection. Methods. We utilised the results of 3D numerical MHD simulations of an observed EUV bright point (BP) in the solar atmosphere. The simulations are based on MDI line-of-sight magnetogram data from 13 June 1998. We analysed the results of the simulations using the method of magnetic charge topology. Three different methods of reducing the magnetogram to a set of point magnetic sources are tested. Results. Observations of the BP show a rotation of one of its main magnetic source regions. Numerical simulations of this rotational motion result in a localised build-up of parallel electric current, which is dissipated by anomalous resistivity, causing 3D magnetic reconnection and BP heating. The magnetic topological structure of the simulated BP was also calculated, and a portion of the topological separatrix surface bounding the magnetic flux of the rotating source region is found to correspond to the locations of current build-up and heating. All three magnetogram reduction methods produce similar results for the large-scale magnetic field structure. Conclusions. Magnetic topology is a useful method for predicting the locations of coronal current concentrations, insofar as the results of our simulations show that strong integrated parallel electric fields are found only along topological separatrix surfaces. However, further investigation is necessary to determine exactly which parts of the reconstructed separatrices will host the electric currents. Topological magnetic field reconstructions also cast light on the location of coronal BP heating, which occurs as a result of the dissipation of the currents by 3D reconnection. The choice of the magnetogram reduction algorithm does not greatly affect the large-scale topological features of the resulting reconstructed magnetic field. Further work is required to compare these results with data for other observed BPs.

The evolution of an X2.7 solar flare, that occurred in a complex βγδ magnetic configuration region on 2003 November 3 is discussed utilizing a multiwavelength data set. The very first signature of pre-flare coronal activity is observed in radio wavelengths as type III burst that occurred several minutes prior to the flare signature in Hα. This type III is followed by the appearance of a looptop source in hard X-ray (HXR) images obtained from RHESSI. During the main phase of the event, Hα images observed from the solar tower telescope at ARIES, Nainital, reveal well-defined footpoint (FP) and looptop (LT) sources. As the flare evolves, the LT source moves upward and the separation between the two FP sources increases. The co-alignment of Hα with HXR images shows spatial correlation between Hα and HXR footpoints, while the rising LT source in HXR is always located above the LT source seen in Hα. The evolution of LT and FP sources is consistent with the reconnection models of solar flares. The EUV images at 195Å taken by SOHO/EIT reveal intense emission on the disk at the flaring region during the impulsive phase. Further, slow drifting type IV bursts, observed at low coronal heights at two time intervals along the flare period, indicate rising plasmoids or loop systems. The intense type II radio burst at time in between these type IV bursts, but at a relatively larger height indicates the onset of CME and its associated coronal shock wave. The study supports the standard CSHKP model of flares, which is consistent with nearly all eruptive flare models. More important, the results also contain evidence for breakout reconnection before the flare phase.

The ion-tearing mode instability is studied in a magnetotail configuration, with an embedded thin current sheet at the center of the plasma sheet, taking into account the effects due to electron dynamics and perturbed electrostatic potential. It is found that the presence of trapped electrons in the forced current sheet has a strong stabilizing effect on thinner current sheets. The iontearing instability can exist provided the trapped electron population density is less than about 10-20 % of the total electron number density. This can be achieved either by the background turbulence present in the plasma sheet or by the high -frequency plasma instabilities excited by the strong current of the inner current sheet itself. Under such a situation, the configuration becomes progressively more ion-tearing unstable as the forced current sheet becomes thinner. This eventually could lead to the disruption of the current sheet and to the onset of substorm expansion phase.

Magnetic turbulence is found in most space plasmas, including the Earth’s magnetosphere, and the interaction region between the magnetosphere and the solar wind. Recent spacecraft observations of magnetic turbulence in the ion foreshock, in the magnetosheath, in the polar cusp regions, in the magnetotail, and in the high latitude ionosphere are reviewed. It is found that: 1. A large share of magnetic turbulence in the geospace environment is generated locally, as due for instance to the reflected ion beams in the ion foreshock, to temperature anisotropy in the magnetosheath and the polar cusp regions, to velocity shear in the magnetosheath and magnetotail, and to magnetic reconnection at the magnetopause and in the magnetotail. 2. Spectral indices close to the Kolmogorov value can be recovered for low frequency turbulence when long enough intervals at relatively constant flow speed are analyzed in the magnetotail, or when fluctuations in the magnetosheath are considered far downstream from the bow shock. 3. For high frequency turbulence, a spectral index α≃2.3 or larger is observed in most geospace regions, in agreement with what is observed in the solar wind. 4. More studies are needed to gain an understanding of turbulence dissipation in the geospace environment, also keeping in mind that the strong temperature anisotropies which are observed show that wave particle interactions can be a source of wave emission rather than of turbulence dissipation. 5. Several spacecraft observations show the existence of vortices in the magnetosheath, on the magnetopause, in the magnetotail, and in the ionosphere, so that they may have a primary role in the turbulent injection and evolution. The influence of such a turbulence on the plasma transport, dynamics, and energization will be described, also using the results of numerical simulations.

In this paper we study flux transfer events (FTE) observed at the post-noon edge of the exterior cusp region by Cluster satellites. During the outbound dayside orbit on 2 February 2003, intense bursts of energetic particles were observed in close conjuction with magnetic field FTE signatures by the RAPID instrument onboard the Cluster 4. The pitch-angle distribution of the particles showed that the enhancements consist of particles flowing antiparallel to the magnetosheath field lines away from the expected reconnection site to the exterior cusp. At the same time Cluster 3 observed enhancements of energetic particles deeper in the exterior cusp with a delay of about 40 s to the Cluster 4 enhancements. The estimated maximum energy gain per particle by reconnection remains below 1 keV, thus clearly below the tens to hundreds of keV energy range observed by the RAPID instrument. These observations support the earlier statistical result of the magnetospheric origin of energetic particles in the exterior cusp. Reconnection near the exterior cusp partly releases the particles in the closed field lines of the adjacent HLPS region into the exterior cusp.

A key feature of collisionless magnetic reconnection is the formation of Hall magnetic and electric field structure in the vicinity of the diffusion region. Here we present multi-point Cluster observations of a reconnection event in the near-Earth magnetotail where the diffusion region was nested by the Cluster spacecraft; we compare observations made simultaneously by different spacecraft on opposite sides of the magnetotail current sheet. This allows the spatial structure of both the electric and magnetic field to be probed. It is found that, close to the diffusion region, the magnetic field displays a symmetric quadrupole structure. The Hall electric field is symmetric, observed to be inwardly directed on both sides of the current sheet. It is large ($40 mV m À1) on the earthward side of the diffusion region, but substantially weaker on the tailward side, suggesting a reduced reconnection rate reflected by a similar reduction in E y. A smallscale magnetic flux rope was observed in conjunction with these observations. This flux rope, observed very close to the reconnection site and entrained in the plasma flow, may correspond to what have been termed secondary islands in computer simulations. The core magnetic field inside the flux rope is enhanced by a factor of 3, even though the lobe guide field is negligible. Observations of the electric field inside the magnetic island show extremely strong ($100 mV m À1) fields which may play a significant role in the particle dynamics during reconnection.

We present observations of a large solar white light flare observed on 2001 Aug 25 using data from the the TRACE white light channel and Yohkoh/HXT. These emissions are consistent with the classic Type I white light flare mechanism and we find that the enhanced white light emission observed by TRACE originates in the chromosphere and temperature minimum regions via non-equilibrium hydrogen ionization induced by direct collisions with the electron beam and by backwarming of the lower atmosphere. The three flare kernels observed in hard X-rays and white light are spatially associated with magnetic separatrices and one of the kernels is observed to move along a magnetic separatrix at 400 km s −1. This is evidence in favor of particle acceleration models which energize the electrons via magnetic reconnection at magnetic separators.

Data from Polar and Geotail spacecraft are combined to investigate the relationship between locations of active auroras and the magnetotail plasma sheet region where reversed fast plasma flows are generated during substorms. Using the magnetospheric magnetic field model, it is shown that at the beginning of the tailward fast flow the ionospheric footprint of the spacecraft measuring the flow tends to be located poleward of the auroral bulge. The spacecraft within the earthward flow is mapped equatorward of the poleward edge of the auroral bulge. We conclude that a source of the fast plasma flows is conjugated with the poleward edge of the auroral bulge. Analysis of the behavior of the plasma and the magnetic field in the vicinity of the source of the diverging flows allows us to conclude that the source region, interpreted as the magnetic reconnection site, coincides with the region of the cross-tail current reduction, and the tailward propagation of the region is associated with the tailward propagation of the current disruption front.

We review basic theoretical concepts in particle acceleration, with particular emphasis on processes likely to occur in regions of magnetic reconnection. Several new developments are discussed, including detailed studies of reconnection in three-dimensional magnetic field configurations (e.g., current sheets, collapsing traps, separatrix regions) and stochastic acceleration in a turbulent environment. Fluid, test-particle, and particle-in-cell approaches are used and results compared. While these studies show considerable promise in accounting for the various observational manifestations of solar flares, they are limited by a number of factors, mostly relating to available computational power. Not the least of these issues is the need to explicitly incorporate the electrodynamic feedback of the accelerated particles themselves on the environment in which they are accelerated. A brief prognosis for future advancement is offered.

Injection of Lower Hybrid Heating and Current Drive (LHCD) into the current ramp-up phase of JET discharges can produce extremely reversed q-profiles characterized by a core region of near zero current density (within Motional Stark Effect diagnostic measurement errors). Non-inductive, off-axis co-current drive induces a back electromotive force inside the non-inductive current radius that drives a negative current in the plasma core. The core current density does not go negative, although current diffusion calculations indicate that there is sufficient LHCD to cause this. The clamping of the core current density near zero is consistent with n=0 reconnection events redistributing the core current soon after it goes negative. This is seen in reduced MHD simulations and in nonlinear resistive MHD simulations which predict that these discharges undergo n=0 reconnection events that clamp the core current near zero.

Many phenomena in the Earth's magnetotail have characteristic temporal scales of several minutes and spatial scales of a few Earth radii (R E ). Examples of such transient and localized mesoscale phenomena are bursty bulk flows, beamlets, energy dispersed ion beams, flux ropes, traveling compression regions, night-side flux transfer events, and rapid flappings of the current sheet. Although most of these observations are linked to specific interpretations or theoretical models they are inter-related and can be the different aspects of a physical process or origin. Recognizing the inter-connected nature of the different transient and localized phenomena in the magnetotail, this paper reviews their observations by highlighting their important characteristics, with emphasis on the new results from Cluster multipoint observations. The multi-point Cluster measurements have provided, for the first time, the ability to distinguish between temporal and spatial variations, and to resolve spatial structures. Some examples of the new results are: flux ropes with widths of 0.3 R E , transient field aligned currents associated with bursty bulk flows and connected to the Hall current at the magnetic reconnection, flappings of the magnetotail current sheet with time scales of 100 s-10 min and thickness of few thousand km, and particle energization including velocity and time dispersed ion structures with the Correspondence to: A. S. Sharma ([email protected]) latter having durations of 1-3 min. The current theories of these transient and localized processes are based largely on magnetic reconnection, although the important role of the interchange and other plasma modes are now well recognized. On the kinetic scale, the energization of particles takes place near the magnetic X-point by non-adiabatic processes and wave-particle interactions. The theory, modeling and simulations of the plasma and field signatures are reviewed and the links among the different observational concepts and the theoretical frameworks are discussed. The mesoscale processes in the magnetotail and the strong coupling among them are crucial in developing a comprehensive understanding of the multiscale phenomena of the magnetosphere.

The suprathermal electrons of _>20 keV that extend from the hot thermal electron with 2 -3 keV temperature are sometimes observed in Earth's magnetosphere in association with reconnection. We study the origin of the hot and suprathermal electrons in terms of the kinetic magnetic reconnection process by using the two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation. We find that the hot and suprathermal electrons can be formed in the nonlinear evolution of a large-scale magnetic reconnection. The electrons are, at the first stage, accelerated in the elongated, thin, X-type current sheet. Next the preheated/accelerated electrons are transported to the stronger magnetic field region produced by piling up of magnetic field lines due to colliding of the fast reconnection outflow with the preexisting plasma. In this region they are further accelerated owing to the X7B drift and the curvature drift. The mirror fbrce of the reconnecting magnetic fields, the effective pitch angle scattering that occurs when the Larmor radius is comparable to the magnetic field line curvature radius, and the broadband waves excited by the Hall electric current are the other important agents to control the particle acceleration.

1] Connecting interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) to their solar pre-eruption source requires a clear understanding of how that source may have evolved during eruption. have presented a three-dimensional numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulation of a CME, which showed how, in the course of eruption, a coronal flux rope may writhe and reconnect both internally and with surrounding fields in a manner that leads to a partial ejection of only part of the rope as a CME. In this paper, we will explicitly describe how the evolution during eruption found in that simulation leads to alterations of the magnetic connectivity, helicity, orientation, and topology of the ejected portion of the rope so that it differs significantly from that of the pre-eruption rope. Moreover, because a significant part of the magnetic helicity remains behind in the lower portion of the rope that survives the eruption, the region is likely to experience further eruptions. These changes would complicate how ICMEs embedded in the solar wind relate to their solar source. In particular, the location and evolution of transient coronal holes, topology of magnetic clouds (''tethered spheromak''), and likelihood of interacting ICMEs would differ significantly from what would be predicted for a CME which did not undergo writhing and partial ejection during eruption.